L  I  B  R  ^4l  R  Y 

OI-    THE 

Theological     Seminary, 

PRINCETON,  N.  J. 

BX  8915  .C55"18A8  v.  3        ^ 

Chalmers,  Thomas,  1780-1847.! 

Posthumous  works  of  the  Rev 

Thomas  Chalmers  . . . 


{ 


POSTHUMOUS  WOEKS 


EEV.  THOMAS  CHALMERS,  D.D„  LLD, 


5     o^.x/.) 


EDITED    BY    THE 


REV.  WILLIAM  HANNA,  LLD. 


VOL.    HI. 


NEW    YORK: 

HARPER    &   BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS, 

82    CLIFF    STREET. 
18  48. 


fllorae  Mtlitat  (J^uotitrianae. 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READIIGS 


BY    THE    LATE 


THOMAS  CHALMERS,  D.D,  LLD. 


IN     THREE     VOLUMES. 
VOL.      III. 


NEW    YORK: 

HARPER   &   BROTHERS,    PUBLISHERS, 

82   CLIFF    STREET. 

1848. 


CONTENTS. 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS- 

vAoa 

PSALMS, 1-177 

PROVERBS, 177-237 

ECCLESIASTES, 237-250 

SONG  OF  SOLOMON, 251-256 

ISAIAH, 257-341 

JEREMIAH, ■  341-428 


IVAILY  SCRIPTUKE  READINGS. 


PROPERf)^     -, 

PRUTGETm 
l^orac  33iblica0  (SuotiUtanae. 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


PSALMS. 

Before  entering  on  this  rich  and  precious  department 
of  Scripture,  let  me  lift  up  a  solemn  prayer  to  God,  that 
He  would  enable  me  to  gather  from  it  those  fruits  unto 
holiness,  the  end  of  which  is  life  everlasting  ;  and  that  the 
same  Spirit  which  animated  the  Psalmist  would  enlighten 
and  impress  me  with  all  the  fervour  and  devotedness 
which  burn  and  breathe  throughout  these  sacred  compo- 
sitions— a  treasure  and  blessing  to  the  Church  in  all  ages. 

Psalm  i. — Dr.  Good,  in  his  Historical  Outline  of  the 
Psalms,  states  that  this  was  written  by  David  previous 
to  his  entry  on  public  life.  I  am  not  sure  that  I  will 
frequently  advert  to  the  occasions  of  the  different  Psalms. 
But  let  me,  0  God,  drink  in  the  spirit  and  sentiment  of 

these  blessed  effusions The  scorner  is  the  infidel  of 

these  times,  who  poured  mockery  on  the  ways  of  God  and 
on  His  people  ;  and  the  Psalmist,  disowning  such,  pro- 
nounces on  the  better  part  of  him  whose  delight  and  me- 
ditation are  the  law  of  God. — 0  my  God,  let  me  shun 

VOL.  IIL  A 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READLNGS. 


tlie  partial  and  constrained  views  of  those  who  speak  of 
it  as  the  onlj  end  of  Thy  law,  that  it  should  convince  of 
sin.  Let  me  recognise  it  in  all  its  prominency  and  all  its 
preciousness^and  this  to  men  after  conversion  as  well  as 
before  it.  May  it  be  put  into  my  heart,  and  yield  there, 
as  from  a  root,  all  the  fmits  of  righteousness.  And 
while  the  wicked  are  filled  with  the  fruits  of  their  own 
w^ays,  may  I  flourish  and  prosper,  0  God,  before  Thee. 

Psalm  il — There  was  doubtless  enough  in  the  history 
of  David  to  supply  him  v/ith  immediate  topics  for  the 
composition  of  this  psalm.  He  had  the  combinations  of 
hostile  kings  to  make  head  against ;  and  he  was  helped 
to  prevail  over  them ;  and  he  was  at  length  established  in 
the  city  of  Jerusalem,  as  the  seat  of  his  government ;  and 
it  had  been  the  wisdom  of  his  enemies  to  enter  into  peace 
with  him.  But  notwithstanding  all  these  obvious  adap- 
tations, a  greater  than  David  is  here;  and  the  testimony 
of  Scripture  itself  to  this,  (Acts  iv.  25,)  forms  a  warrant 
for  the  double  sense,  not  of  this  passage  only,  but  of  many 
others  which  have  not  been  so  expressly  referred  to. 
There  is  a  call  here  even  to  the  present  kings  and  govern- 
ments of  the  world,  and  more  especially  to  our  own  rulers, 
who  are  but  rejoicing  in  the  secular  prosperity  of  the 
kingdom,  but  do  not  rejoice  with  trembling. — 0  may 
the  kingdoms  of  this  world  become  the  kingdoms  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  And  may  I,  Heavenly 
Eather,  be  drawn  into  close  fellowship  with  Thy  blessed 
Son,  and  have  the  blessedness  of  those  who  put  their 
trust  in  Him Throughout  the  psalm,  and  more  espe- 
cially at  its  conclusion,  there  is  an  obvious  expansion  be- 
yond the  primaiy  meaning  and  application  of  it  to  David 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


Psalm  hi. — This  psalm  is  thought  to  have  been  com- 
posed by  David  on  his  flight  from  Absalom.  It  applies 
well  to  his  situation  at  that  time.  He  retains,  in  the 
midst  of  his  disasters,  unbroken  confidence  in  God — he 
sustains  himself  on  the  Rock  of  Ages.  This  and  other 
psalms  seem  as  if  composed  piecemeal,  and  at  interv^als 
between  one  part  and  another ;  for  with  the  prayer  for 
victory  going  before,  there  is  afterwards  the  victory  itself 
recorded,  though  verse  7  may  refer  to  his  past  experience. 
The  word  Selah,  which  occurs  so  often  in  the  Psalms, 
is  regarded  by  many  as  a  mark  somehow  related  to  the 
music;  and  certainly  it  occurs  nowhere  else  in  Scripture. 
By  others  it  is  looked  upon  as  indicative  of  a  pause  for 
the  purpose  of  giving  greater  solemnity  and  emphasis  to 
the  utterance  which  had  gone  before. — Let  my  refuge, 
like  that  of  the  Psalmist,  ever  be  in  God,  nor  let  the 
most  adverse  and  menacing  events  ever  dispossess  me  of 

my  confidence Though  the  reference  to  our  Saviour  is 

not  here  so  obvious  as  in  the  last  psalm,  yet,  without 
overstraining,  may  it  well  be  applied  to  Him  when  in  the 
Garden  of  Gethsemane. 

Psalm  iv. — Neginoth  signifies,  it  is  most  likely,  "  stringed 
instruments  ]'  and  this  psalm,  said  to  be  the  composition 
of  David,  seems  addressed  to  the  chief  of  the  performers 
on  these,  that  he  may  set  it  to  the  music  of  his  particular 
band.  The  subject-matter  is  exceedingly  precious;  and 
though  perhaps  written  for  a  particular  occasion — it  may 
be  for  the  victory  over  Absalom — yet  are  its  spirit  and 
sentiments  adapted  to  the  state  of  the  godly  in  all  ages. 
Enlargement  in  distress  is  what  we  have  often  a  call  to 
pray  for ;  and  to  Thee,  0  Lord,  would  I  apply  for  the 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


deliverance  which  I  need.  There  is  a  gloiy — that  of 
effecting  a  conquest  over  the  ignorance  and  wickedness 
of  a  city  district — which  some,  I  fear,  would  rejoice  in 
turning  to  shame. — 0  expel  their  jealousy,  and  put  truth 
into  their  inward  parts.  Hear  me  when  I  call;  and  may 
I  have  the  blessedness  of  those  who  fear  always,  and 
who  so  shun  or  resist  temptation,  that  they  may  refrain 
from  sinning.  Set  me  apart  for  Thyself,  and  teach  me  to 
combine  the  sacrifices  of  obedience  with  thorough  confi- 
dence in  Thy  mercy.  Lord,  let  me  not  set  my  affections 
on  any  created  thing — not  even  on  an  enterprise  of 
Christian  good,  in  such  a  way  as  to  withdraw  me  from 
that  direct  intercourse  with  Thyself,  in  which  I  meet  with 
the  light  of  Thy  countenance,  and  rejoice  in  the  Lord. 
May  I  be  glad,  not  in  this  world's  riches,  but  in  Him 
who  giveth  all  things  richly  to  enjoy.  In  Thee,  0  God, 
may  I  have  safety  and  peace. 

Psalm  v. — This  psalm,  too,  is  ascribed  to  David,  and 
addressed  to  the  chief  performer  upon  wind  instruments. 
It  is  imagined  by  Dr.  Good  to  have  been  written  before 
the  victory  over  Absalom,  but  of  which  he  either  gives 
forth  the  prophetic  anticipation,  or  perhaps  subjoined  the 
celebration  in  some  additional  verses  after  its  achievement. 
He  had  great  comfort,  and  often  great  confidence,  along 
with  intense  earnestness,  in  prayer.  He  not  only  prays, 
but  looks  up,  as  if  waiting  for  an  answer  —  The  prophecy 
of  verse  6  is  repeated  in  the  language  of  prayer  in  verse 
10;  yet,  after  all,  may  in  this  form  be  but  a  prophecy  still. 
Even  though  a  prayer,  it  is  but  a  justifiable  prayer  for 
victory,  and  so  for  the  defeat  of  his  enemies.  He  predicts 
his  return  to  that  temple  and  those  sendees  in  which  he 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


deliglitecl,  tliough  for  a  time  exiled  from  Jerusalem  — 
"What  an  expressive  prayer  for  direction,  "  Make  Thy  way 
straight  before  my  face  l'\..  To  put  our  trust  in  God,  and 
to  be  righteous,  are  ascriptions  applied  interchangeably  to 
the  same  people;  and  as  such,  or  as  at  once  trustful  and 
obedient,  are  they  called  upon  to  rejoice,  for  that  God 
will  bless  them  and  favour  them. 

Psalm  vi. — This  is  addressed  to  the  chief  musician  on 
stringed  instruments  ;  and  it  is  added  "  upon  Sheminith," 
(1  Chron.  XV.  21,)  probably  signifying  the  eighth  band, 
which  was  a  band  of  harpers.  It,  too,  is  supposed  to 
have  been  written  during  the  rebellion  of  Absalom,  and 
certainly  in  a  spirit  of  greater  anxiety  and  distress  than 
the  preceding.  He  prays  under  a  sense  or  fear  of  dis- 
pleasure, and  with  a  deep  feeling  of  his  own  helplessness. 
There  is  here  the  language  of  importunate  entreaty.  He 
speaks  as  if  apprehensive  that  he  was  to  fall  in  battle, 
and  that  his  season  of  service  to  God  was  like  to  be  soon 
ended.  To  "  deliver  my  soul,''  seems  tantamount  to  "  de- 
liver my  life'' — keep  me  still  in  the  land  of  the  living. 
The  di'ead  of  his  enemies  kept  him  awake,  and  in  agony, 
during  the  night:  but  the  spirit  of  re-assurance  visits 
him ;  and  with  the  utterance  of  his  purposes  to  have  no 
fellowship  with  the  workers  of  iniquity,  he  expresses  his 
confidence  that  the  Lord  had  heard  him,  and  that  He 
would  confound  his  enemies. 

August,  1845. 

Psalm  vii. — Shiggaion  is  of  difficult  explanation,  but  it 
is  understood  to  be  descriptive  in  some  way  of  the  psalm. 
.  - .  Gush  some  would  understand  to  be  Saul,  the  son  of 
Kish.     There  is  no  recorded  name  elsewhere  in  Scripture 


e  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  viii. 

of  Cush  the  Benjamite ;  but  as  it  signifies  black,  it  may 
be  expressive  of  moral  turpitude,  and  so  be  an  epithet 

laid  upon  Shimei David  was  sorely  exercised  by  the 

hostility  of  those  who  rose  up  against  him  ;  and  an  inter- 
nal evidence  may  be  struck  out  from  the  harmony  which 
obtains  between  his  compositions  and  his  personal  history. 
Throughout  this  psalm  there  is  evidently  a  confidence  in 
his  heart  towards  God,  and  on  the  ground  that  his  con- 
science did  not  co.ndemn  him.  He  appeals  to  his  own 
conduct  towards  his  enemies,  in  contrast  with  their  con- 
duct towards  him.  And  let  it  be  observed,  that  his  prayer 
against  his  enemies  is  that  they  might  be  overthrown  for 
the  sake  of  the  congregation,  or  that  the  people  of  Israel 
might  be  brought  back  to  their  allegiance,  and  compass 
about  the  ordinances  of  the  temple,  now  forsaken  in  the 
flight   of  the   king   from  Absalom. — "  Return   thou  on 

high ;"  show  Thyself  a  God  of  judgment  from  above 

He  prays  for  the  overthrow  of  a  wicked,  and  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  righteous  government.  He  again  appeals 
to  God,  the  Searcher  of  hearts — and  prays  that  he,  as 
upright  in  heart,  might  be  saved  ;  and  concludes  with  an 
expression  of  full  reliance  on  the  equity  of  God's  distri- 
butions. 

Psalm  viii. — Gittith  has  a  near  affinity  to  a  word  sig- 
nifying a  wine-press,  and  the  psalm  may  have  been  com- 
posed, it  is  thought,  for  the  feast  of  tabernacles.  But  let 
the  occasion  be  what  it  may,  the  subject-matter  is  very- 
palpable  and  very  precious.  God  performs  great  things 
often  by  weak  and  unlikely  instiTiments — as  when  through 
the  preaching  of  the  Gospel  by  illiterate  men,  babes  in 
this  world's  wisdom,  He  overthrows  even  principalities 


DAILY  SCRirTURE  READINGS. 


and  powers  ;  and  Satan  is  tlius  made  to  fall  as  lightning 

from  heaven Verse  2  points,  I  think,  very  obviously  to 

a  link,  which  might  well  conduct  us  from  the  natural  to 
the  sjDiritual  contemplation.  And  we  have  the  express 
w^arrant  of  the  Apostle  for  applying  this  psalm  to  Christ ; 
and  it  is  indeed  wonderful  that  humanity  should  be  so 
exalted  as  to  have  all  put  under  its  feet^insomuch  that 
Christ,  in  the  form  of  a  man,  bears  universal  rule,  and  is  all 
in  all.     But  the  primary  and  more  obvious  application  of 

the  sentiment,  too,  is  worthy  of  being  dwelt  upon The 

reference  to  the  moon  and  stars,  apart  from  the  sun,  makes 
for  this  psalm  being  a  nocturnal  meditation  on  the  heavens 
— in  the  splendour  and  magnitude  of  which,  it  is  matter 
both  of  admiration  and  gratitude,  that  man  should  have 
been  so  endowed  and  honoured  as  we  find  him  to  be. 
And  if  the  heavens  be  above  the  earth,  how  excellent  in 
all  the  earth,  and  how  vastly  higher  than  all  who  are 
therein,  is  "  He  that  is  above  the  heavens  ! "  Christ  in 
His  humiliation  was  placed  lower  than  the  angels,  but  by 
His  exaltation  rose  immeasurably  above  them. 

Psalm  ix.  1-10. — Muthlabben  has  been  regarded  as  a 
chorus  of  damsels — some  say  responded  to  by  youths — 
and  it  may  be  addressed  to  the  chief  of  the  female  choir. 

See  the  Pictorial  Bible Higgaion  signifies  meditation, 

and  may  be  regarded  as  a  call  to  ponder  well  what  had 

just  been  said  before How  strong  and  constant  are 

the  aspirations  of  the  Psalmist  after  God !  This  psalm  is 
supposed  to  have  been  written  after  the  defeat  of  a  power- 
ful confederacy ;  and  throughout  there  is  in  it  a  thankful 
acknowledgment  of  God,  wdio  had  maintained  his  rij^ht 
and  his  cause,  and  that  against  the  heathen,  or  nations — 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


of  whose  combinations  against  liim  we  read  botli  in  Scrip- 
ture and  in  Joseplms.  Their  destnictions  had  now  come  to 
a  pei-petual  end,  for  they  had  destroyed  many  cities ;  but 
God  had  put  them  doAni,  so  that  no  memorial  was  left  of 
them.  He  then  contrasts  their  ephemeral  prosperity 
with  the  endurance  of  the  everlasting  God,  whose  judg- 
ments are  all  in  righteousness,  and  who  is  a  refuge  for 
the  oppressed. — Let  me  trust  that  in  seeking  Him  He 
will  not  always  hide  Himself,  but  be  at  length  found  of 
me,  and  will  never  forsake  me. 

11-20. — He  on  these  premises  calls  for  the  praise  of 
God  from  all  his  worshippers,  who  will  remember  His 
people,  and  take  vengeance  ujion  their  adversaries.  And 
he  prays  for  God's  special  mercy  to  himself,  and  for  secu- 
rity from  his  enemies — that  he  might  stand  forth  as  a 
monument  of  God's  goodness,  and  show  forth  all  His 
praise,  even  in  the  gates  of  Zion — in  Jerusalem,  the  place 
of  His  habitation When  speaking  of  the  sure  destruc- 
tion of  the  wicked,  what  a  wamino-  and  what  a  weio-ht  of 
conviction  lie  in  the  announcement,  that  "they  who  forget 
God  shall  be  turned  into  hell!" — Let  me  feel  my  ungodli- 
ness, and  never  cease  my  prayers  for  the  removal  of  this 
sore  inveteracy.  But  the  circumstances  of  David  give 
him  a  special  direction  towards  God  as  the  avenger  of  the 
poor  and  needy,  as  the  Righteous  Judge  of  the  nations  of 
the  earth,  on  whom  he  prays  for  such  manifestations  of 
the  Divine  justice,  that  they  might  feel  their  subordina- 
tion to  Him  who  sitteth  on  hi^-h. 

Psalm  x. — He  again,  under  the  exercise  of  annoyance 
^rom  his  wicked  enemies,  addresses  himself  to  God  in 
prayer.     Good  imagines  that  this  psalm  was  written  after 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


Absalom's  return  from  banisliment,  and  wlien  the  courts 
of  justice  dealt  iniquitouslj  against  the  poor  and  the 
innocent.  The  wicked  boasted  at  that  time  of  the  pro- 
sperity of  their  cause — it  may  be  through  the  covetous 
judges  whom  themselves  had  bribed,  (verse  3.) . . .  What 
another  trait  of  character  for  general  conviction — that 
"  God  is  not  in  all  his  thoughts  ! ''  He  then  in  fuller  de- 
tail sets  before  us  the  doings  of  the  ungodly  oppressor 
and  man  of  violence.  He  hath  cast  off  the  fear  of  any 
coming  judgment  at  the  hand  of  Him  who  sits  invisible 
in  the  heavens ;  and  under  the  imagination  that  God 
regardeth  not,  takes  his  measures  of  deceit  and  ciTielty 
against  the  helpless.  But  God  will  "  require''  it.  He  will 
prove  Himself  the  Helper  of  those  who  have  no  help  in 
man.  He  will  take  full  vengeance  on  the  oppressor, 
and  leave  none  of  his  delinquencies  unreckoned  with  or 
unpunished.  He  is  King  for  ever,  and  as  Judge  of  all 
the  eaith  will  do  right.  There  seems  to  have  been  a 
present  exemplification  of  this  in  the  defeat  of  the  hostile 
nations  who  had  invaded  the  Holy  Land — a  specimen  of 
the  general  deliverance  which  He  will  eifect  in  favour  of 
the  injured. 

Psalm  xi. — This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have  been  written 
at  the  time  when  DaA'id  had  taken  refuge  from  the  perse- 
cutions of  Saul  in  a  heathen  couii:,  and  was  there  exposed 
to  the  mockeries  of  the  profane  on  the  score  of  his  religion. 
They,  perhaps  in  irony,  asked  him  of  his  God,  and  bade 
him  flee  for  refuge  to  that  Being  Avhom  he  professes  to  be 
the  mountain  of  his  security.  But  the  Psalmist  will  not 
be  turned  aside  from  his  confidence  in  God ;  for  if  that 
foundation  were  destroyed,  what  could  the  righteous  do 


10  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xiii. 

for  their  o^vn  presentation?  But  the  Lord  seeth  from 
above,  and  will  protect  His  o^vn — thus  manifesting  Him- 
self to  be  a  lover  of  righteousness.  And  He  will  rain 
vengeance  on  the  wicked — thus  manifesting  Himself  to 
be  a  hater  of  iniquity.  He  beholdeth  the  upright  with 
favour,  lifting  upon  them  the  light  of  His  countenance. 
It  is  an  enduring  testimony  for  all  ages,  that  "  His  eyes  do 
behold,  and  His  eyelids  try,  the  children  of  men." 

Psalm  xii. — This  psalm  seems  to  have  been  composed 
at  a  time  of  great  national  degeneracy;  and  certain  it  is, 
that  in  the  direct  history  we  read  much  both  of  deceit 
and  violence.  There  was  much  of  dissimulation  and  art- 
ful policy  among  the  courtiers — nay,  in  the  very  house- 
hold and  family  of  David.  There  were  men  who  felt 
themselves  as  if  emancipated  from  the  law  of  truth 
— and  this  on  the  strange  plea,  that  as  their  lips  were 
their  o^ti,  they  might  say  what  they  liked  with  them; 
as  if  on  the  principle  that  a  man  might  turn  his  property 
to  any  use  he  pleases,  or  do  what  he  will  with  his  own. 
And  they  added  oppression  to  falsehood;  puffing  at, 
or  making  contemptuous  and  menacing  demonstrations 
against  the  objects  of  their  hostility.    (Psalm  x.  5.)     And 

here,  too,  the  sure  refuge  of  the  Psalmist  is  in  the  Lord 

What  a  precious  saying,  and  how  it  should  aliment  and 
uphold  our  faith,  when  told  that  "  the  words  of  the  Lord 
are  as  tried  silver.'' — On  the  warrant  and  encouragement 
of  this  saying  do  I  pray,  0  God,  that  Thou  wouldest  keep 

me  from  violence How  true  it  is,  that  wicked  officials 

bring  out  wicked  characters  in  abundance  over  a  land. 

Psalm  xiil — This  psalm  must  have  been  composed  by 


PSALM  XIV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  11 

David  when  greatly  urged  and  like  to  be  overborne  by 
his  enemies.  Perhaps  the  enemy  here  spoken  of  is  Saul. 
He  was  greatly  tried  and  afflicted  by  the  oppositions  of 
men  ;  and  let  me  not  think  that  any  strange  thing  hath 
happened  to  me  when  exercised  in  like  manner.  Let  me 
seek,  as  the  Psalmist  did,  unto  God.  Hide  me,  0  Lord, 
from  the  strife  of  tongues.  Save  me  from  the  pain  of 
those  nervous  and  imaginative  apprehensions,  to  which  I 
too  much  give  way.  Let  my  trust  be  in  Thy  mercy ;  and 
0  restore  to  me  the  joys  of  Thy  salvation.  I  brood  a 
great  deal  too  much,  taking  such  counsel  in  my  soul  as 
keeps  up  a  perpetual  fear  and  sorrow  in  my  heart,  often 
allied  with  the  fancies  of  solitude,  and  which  the  converse 
and  society  of  my  fellows,  even  in  the  very  scene  of  the 
dreaded  conflict,  tend  to  do  away.  But  let  my  great 
remedy  be  in  converse  with  God ;  and  in  the  believing 
thought,  that  He  will  make  all  things  work  together  for 
good  to  me.  But  that  I  may  have  a  title  to  appropriate 
this  promise,  let  the  love  of  God  be  shed  abroad  in  my 
heart;  and  then,  instead  of  my  enemy  rejoicing  over  me, 
will  I  rejoice  in  God,  who  shall  compass  me  about  with 
songs  of  deliverance. 

Psalm  xiv. — "We  have  here,  too,  the  same  complaints  of 
a  prevailing  wickedness,  amounting  even  to  atheism. 
The  description  here  given  is  applied  by  the  Apostle  to 
the  general  state  and  character  of  mankind.  Their  un- 
godliness is  the  copious  fountain  of  all  profligacy;  and 
whether  this  profligacy  be  realized  or  not  in  the  over- 
flowings of  an  outward  disobedience,  still,  how  strikingly 
true  is  it  of  us  all,  that  by  nature  we  do  not  understand, 
neither  seek  after  God.     He  alternates  in  his  regards 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


between  the  wicked  upon  earth  and  the  righteous  God 
in  Heaven.  He  charges  them  Avith  the  ignorance  of 
Him  who  follows  up  their  cruelty  to  the  poor  by  the  ter- 
rors of  His  vengeance.  They  slight  and  disregard  Him 
throuo-hout  the  season  of  their  wickedness;  but  have  at 
length  to  tremble  before  Him.  They  may  insult  for  a 
while  the  religious  confidence  of  the  good;  but  God  will 
manifest  Himself  at  length  as  the  patron  and  protector 
of  the  generation  of  the  righteous.  This  is  still,  however, 
only  in  prospect,  and  therefore  does  he  pray  that  God 

would  hasten  it The  allusion  here  to  a  captivity  makes 

me  all  the  more  doubtful  of  the  occasion  of  this  psalm. 

Psalm  xv. — This  psalm  is  thought  to  have  been  com- 
posed on  the  setting  up  of  the  Ark;  and  it  sets  forth  the 
characteristics  of  a  true  worshipper  in  Zion,  and  more 
especially  of  an  abider  or  dweller  or  citizen  therein,  and 
therefore  in  particular  of  its  priests  and  office-bearers.  It 
is  an  admirable  representation  of  a  good  and  faithful  man; 
and  an  impressive  example  of  the  way  in  which  the  moral 
IS  blended  with  the  religious  or  sacred  throughout  the 
whole  of  Scripture.  There  is  a  portraiture  here,  both  of 
the  walk  and  of  the  disposition  of  righteousness,  both  as 
in  the  outer  and  the  inner  man — the  walk  and  w^ork  of 
righteousness,  the  tiTith  in  the  heart.  He  is  free  of  the 
vices  of  calumny  and  detraction;  yet,  though  not  per- 
mitted to  speak  evil  with  the  tongue,  there  is  a  warrant 
given  for  a  strong  inward  contempt,  not  only  for  wicked- 
ness, but  for  wicked  persons. — Let  me  be  rigid  in  the  ful- 
filment of  my  promises,  though  I  should  suffer  much  by 
them,  both  in  the  loss  of  time  and  property.  On  the  other 
hand,  let  me  bew^are  of  covetousness ;  and  as  David  was 


PSALM  xYi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  13 

greatly  exposed  to  corrupt  judges,  he  instances  one  exem- 
plification of  it  in  those  who  took  reward  against  the 
innocent,  and  brought  them  in  as  guilty.  "  He  that  doeth 
these  things,''  says  the  Psalmist,  "  shall  never  be  moved,'' 
and,  says  the  Apostle,  "  shall  never  fall."     (2  Pet.  i.  10.) 

Psalm  xvi. — For  the  title  Michtam,  see  Pictorial  Bible. 
. . .  This  psalm  must  have  been  wTitten  in  a  season  of  great 
external  idolatry,  from  which  the  Psalmist  turns  to  take 
refuge  in  God.  And  there  was  the  occurrence  of  many 
such  seasons  in  the  chequered  reign  of  David.  There  are 
many  precious  things  in  this  effusion — the  appropriation 
of  God  as  my  God — the  insignificancy  and  utter  nothing- 
ness as  to  merit  of  our  own  goodness  in  the  sight  of  God, 
yet  the  availableness  of  this  for  the  service  of  God's 
people.  If  ye  love  not  your  fellow- Christian  whom  you  do 
see,  how  can  you  love  God,  whom  you  do  not  see  ? . . .  We 
have  here  the  Tvretchedness  of  idolatiy  ;  and  in  contrast 
with  this  the  deteiTaination  to  keep  by  the  true  God  as 
our  alone  portion,  and  the  maintainor  to  us  of  all  that  He 
hath  assigned  to  be  ours. — My  God,  give  me  the  obvious 
comfort  and  sense  of  sufficiency  which  the  Psalmist 
enjoyed,  even  in  the  midst  of  all  the  wickedness  and 
hostility  by  which  he  was  surrounded.  Be  Thou  always 
before  me,  and  give  me  to  be  secure  and  satisfied  in  the 

conviction  that  Thou  art  on  my  side The  "  gloiy  which 

rejoiceth,"  (verse  9,)  is  here  the  tongue,  the  gloiy  of  man 

— or  the  instrument  by  which  he  glorifies  God What  a 

noble  testimony  here  to  the  doctrine  of  the  resurrection ; 
and  let  me  not  forget  the  Apostolic  reference  to  verse  10 
(Acts  ii.  31  ;  xiii.  35)  as  Scriptural  and  authoritative  for 
Christ  in  the  Psalms. 


14  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xviii. 

Psalm  xvii. — David  had  powerful  confederates  against 
him,  both  at  home  and  among  his  foreign  enemies.  But 
he  turns  him,  as  his  habit  is,  to  God.  He  prays  with  the 
testimony  of  a  good  conscience,  which  causes  confidence 
towards  God.  At  the  same  time,  under  a  sense  of  frailty, 
he  prays  to  be  upheld  in  his  goings.  He  perseveres  in 
that  holy  importunity  which  might  well  be  termed  wrest- 
ling with  God.  His  is  the  case  of  a  man  who  trusts  in 
God,  and  therefore  counts  on  being  saved  by  Him  from 
those  who  rise  up  against  him.  He  had  prosperous  and 
powerful  adversaries  plotting  against  him.  He  describes 
their  malice  and  wickedness  ;  and  their  intent  or  stead- 
fast aim  to  bow  him  down  to  the  earth.  He  calls  the 
wicked  God's  sword,  and  the  men  of  mischief  His  hand 
— instruments  as  they  often  are  of  the  Divine  chastise- 
ment and  discipline To  "  fill  with  God's  hid  treasures,'' 

expresses  that  the  treasures  are  from  God — that  they  are 
His,  laid  up  or  kept  by  Him — the  term  being  expressive 

of  custody  as  well  as  concealment There  is  here  another 

glorious  testimony  to  a  resurrection  and  future  life,  and 
certain  perennial  forms  of  expression  for  all  ages,  as  the 
prayer  of  verse  5  and  of  verse  8 — "  hide  me  under  the 
shadow  of  Thy  wings.". . .  In  the  phrase  to  "behold  God's 
face  in  righteousness,"  there  is  an  essential  reference  to 
the  righteousness  of  Christ,  but  not  exclusively  of  our 
own  personal  righteousness. 

Psalm  xviil  1-6. — This  psalm  must  have  been  com- 
posed by  David  after  he  had  risen  to  a  state  of  secure 
prosperity,  through  much  opposition  and  many  obstacles. 
In  the  midst  of  all  his  creature  comforts,  his  soul  ascends 
upwardly  to  God,  on  whom  his  aiFections  are  set,  and  to 


PsxLM  xvni.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  15 

whom  he  ascribes  all  his  deliverances.  Among  the  as- 
criptions— and  thev  are  such  as  a  warrior  would  make — 
which  he  accumulates  in  the  statement  of  what  God  had 
done  for  him,  there  occurs  the  "  horn  of  salvation '' — the 
horn  being  the  emblem  of  power  and  glory.  There  is  a 
vivid  description  given  of  the  dangers  and  the  menaces  bj 

which  he  was  surrounded The  "  sorrows  of  hell ''  might 

here  simifv  the  terrors  of  death ;  and  manv  were  the 
snares  which  met  him  on  his  path,  and  arrested  his  move- 
ments. His  refuge  was  in  God.  His  cry  arose  to  the 
Lord  of  Hosts. — 0  that  such  were  at  all  times  the  upward 
direction  of  my  thoughts,  when  beset  by  the  conflicts 
of  human  opinion,  and  in  the  strife  of  tongues.  And  so 
it  was,  that  he  obtained  salvation  from  his  enemies. — 
After  the  mention  that  God  had  heard  his  prayer,  he 
proceeds  to  describe  the  way  in  which  it  was  responded 
to ;  and  nothing  can  be  imaged  of  a  more  magnificent 
character  and  bearing  than  the  representation  which 
follows. 

7-16. — There  is  the  grandeur  of  high  inspiration  in  this 
passage ;  and  so  much  beyond  the  dimensions  of  the  literal 
history  as  to  impress  the  conception  that  for  this  history- 
there  must  be  an  antitype.  I  cannot  resist  the  feeling 
that  a  greater  than  David  is  here;  and  that  the  description 
applies  more  to  the  final  conflict  dimly  pourtrayed  in  the 
Book  of  Revelation,  and  which  terminated  in  an  overthrow 
of  the  powers  of  darkness,  and  the  ushering  in  of  the  new 
heavens  and  the  new  earth,  wherein  dwelleth  righteousness. 
It  is  thus  that,  when  applied  to  David,  it  is  regarded  as  a 
figurative  description;  so  that  when  literally  understood, 
it  must  be  held  to  signify  the  victory  of  the  Son  of  God, 
when  he  puts  all  things  under  him — the  most  impressive 


16  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READLNGS.  psalm  xvin. 

part  of  this  truly  overawing  representation.  It  may  also 
be  held  as  applying  to  that  mysterious  conflict  when 
Christ  spoiled  principalities  and  powers,  and  was  draA\Ti 
out  of  the  agony  which  well-nigh  overwhelmed  him.  To 
me  the  most  powerful  stroke  in  this  magnificent  sketch, 
is  that  by  which  "  the  channels  were  seen,  and  the  foun- 
dations of  the  world  discovered." 

17-27. — To  "  prevent ''  here  means  to  lay  an  obstacle  or 
annoyance  in  the  way.  The  description  may  still  be  held 
as  applying  to  Christ,  whom  God  did  exalt,  and  who,  in 
the  days  of  his  flesh,  oflfered  up  prayers  and  supplications 
with  strong  cr)^ing  and  tears,  and  was  heard  by  Him  that 
was  able  to  save  Him  from  death.  In  the  estimation  of 
many  orthodox,  this  passage  would  bear  exclusively  upon 
Christ,  whose  perfect  righteousness  could,  without  any 
qualification,  be  pled  as  the  judicial  reason  of  Christ's 
rightful  deliverance  from  His  enemies.  And  yet,  I  hold 
that  there  is  nothing  in  the  Scrij)tural  theology  which 
forbids  the  application  of  it  to  David,  and  that  just  be- 
cause of  the  innocence  and  righteousness  according  to 
which  the  Lord  rewarded  him.  With  an  upright  man, 
the  Lord  shows  Himself  upright.  God  dealt  difterently 
with  David  and  his  enemies,  because  of  the  difi'erence 
which  obtained  between  their  respective  characters.  He 
loved  David,  and  hated  the  adversaries  of  David,  because 
of  His  love  of  righteousness  and  hatred  of  iniquity.  With 
the  froward,  the  impetuous,  the  headstrong,  the  men  who 
act  from  the  impulse  of  their  o^^m  intractable  wills,  God 
will  evince  a  strength  and  determination  of  will  that  shall 
utterly  overmaster  and  overthrow  them.  It  is  thus,  that 
while  He  saves  the  afflicted  people,  He  brings  down  the 
high  looks. 


MALM  xrur.  DA1L\  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  J7 

28-39. — The  light  here  spoken  of  may  be  the  light  oi 
prosperity,  as  opposed  to  the  darkness  of  adversity;  or  it 
may  be  the  light  Avithin  of  joyful  confidence  in  God.  It 
seems  to  refer  in  this  place  more  to  the  fonner;  and  alto- 
gether in  this  passage  the  literal  is  less  overshaded  by  the 
figure,  nor  does  the  t}^e  expand  so  visibly  into  its  anti- 
type   The  great  burden  of  the  acknowledgments  here 

made  is  for  success  in  war.  David  was  helped  by  God  to 
disperse  his  enemies,  and  to  scale  the  walls  of  the  be- 
sieged. Hence  the  homage  of  his  ascription  to  God,  both 
for  His  way  and  for  His  word;  and  precious  is  it  indeed 
to  be  told  that  "  the  word  of  the  Lord  is  tried.". . .  There  is 
always  a  reference  to  the  false  gods  of  the  heathen  in 
such  questions  as  those  of  the  31st  verse. — Then  follows 
what  God  had  done  in  girding  and  guiding  him  for  the 
battle — enduing  him  with  strength  and  speed,  and  set- 
ting him  on  places  of  security.  He  also  made  him  dex- 
terous in  arms,  and  compassed  him  about  as  with  a 
shield,  and  upheld  him  by  His  right  hand,  and  by  His 
merciful  and  fatherly  treatment  made  him  to  increase. 
He  was  set  on  a  large  and  sure  place;  and  in  every 
way  so  armed  and  accomplished  for  the  warfare,  that 
he  was  enabled  to  overthrow  all  his  enemies. 

40-50. — He  then  describes  the  prostration  of  his  fallen 
enemies,  and  his  own  supremacy  and  power  over  them. 
When  he  speaks  of  being  made  head  of  the  heathen,  he 
accurately  describes  the  mastery  that  he  had  gotten  over  all 
the  countries  around  or  near  to  the  land  of  Israel.  And 
he  concludes  all  with  some  beautiful  devotional  sentences; 
and  instead  of  luxuriating  in  the  contemplation  of  that 
homage  which  was  rendered  to  him  by  foreign  nations, 
both  far  and  near,  he  directs  the  homage  of  his  own  heart 

VOL.  III.  B 


18  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xix. 

upwardly  to  God.  He  ascribes  all  the  exaltation  and 
glory  to  the  God  of  his  salvation,  or  the  God  who  had 
saved  him  from  his  adversaries.  He  gives  thanks  among 
the  heathen,  so  that  the  idolatrous  nations  of  that  period 
were  presented  with  a  testimony  on  behalf  of  the  living 
and  true  God.  It  is  thus  that  God  did  not  leave  Himself 
without  a  witness ;  and  history,  as  well  as  nature,  gave 
evidence  to  His  reality  and  His  power There  is  em- 
bosomed in  this  psalm  the  evidence  of  David  being  at 
least  the  subject,  if  not  the  author;  for  which  last,  how- 
ever, we  have  the  testimony  of  the  title. 

Psalm  xix. — This  is  truly  a  pre-eminent  psalm,  and 
entitled  to  the  admiration  of  all  ages,  for  the  representa- 
tion here  made  both  of  the  glories  of  God's  world,  and  the 
excellencies  of  His. word.  The  material  heaven  bears 
witness  to  all  the  earth  of  His  skill  and  greatness.  The 
line  or  course  of  the  bodies  in  the  heavens  goes  over  the 
whole  of  our  globe  :  in  the  heavens  hath  He  set  a  taber- 
nacle for  the  sun.  And  the  moral  part  of  this  noble  com- 
position is  still  more  precious — dealing  with  the  high  pro- 
perties of  the  law  and  the  testimony There  is  a  copious 

treasury  here  of  texts  to  be  preached  from,  more  especially 
on  the  inherent  satisfactions  of  obedience  to  the  will  of 
God,  and  its  effect  both  to  enlighten  and  to  gladden  the 
heart  of  man.  The  Lord  is  holy,  and  the  fear  of  Him  is 
clean,  because  leading  to  holiness.  Wliat  a  pregnant 
truth,  that  in  the  "  keeping  of  the  commandments  there  is 
great  reward.'' — Let  me  repeat  the  concluding  prayer  of 
the  Psalmist ;  and  I  write  this  with  a  feeling  of  earnest- 
ness— My  God,  search  me  and  try  me.  I  know  that  my 
errors  are  manifold;  but  0  keep  me  from  presumptuous 


PSALM  XXI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  19 

sin.  Be  mj  strength  and  my  Redeemer,  0  God,  that 
though  sin  dwell  in  me,  it  may  not  have  the  dominion 
over  me.  May  Thy  judgments,  or  thy  laws,  be  sweet 
unto  my  taste. 

Psalm  xx. — This  psalm  illustrates  well  the  theory  that, 
along  with  many  others,  it  was  so  constructed  as  to  he 
sung  in  parts.  The  distinction  between  these  is  here 
marked  by  a  change  of  persons.  The  first  four  verses  are 
held  to  be  an  invocation  from  the  general  assembly  for 
blessings  upon  the  king;  the  fifth  verse  to  be  a  reply 
from  the  military  band ;  and  the  sixth  a  blessing  from  the 
high-priest :  after  which  the  band  are  conceived  to  come 
forth  with  a  reply  in  the  seventh  and  eighth  verses ;  when 
at  last  the  general  chorus  strikes  in  with  the  concluding 
prayer,  which  some  would  make  clearer  by  interpreting 
thus — "  Lord,  save  the  king,  and  hear  us  when  we  call.'' 
The  words  as  they  stand,  however,  admit  also  of  a  mean- 
ing, though  not  so  obvious  or  distinct  as  the  one  now 
given.  There  are  weighty  petitions  here,  applicable  to 
other  parties,  and  which  might  be  adopted  for  themselves 
by  private  Christians — as.  Hear  me,  0  Lord,  in  the  day 
of  trouble;  Help  and  strengthen  me  out  of  the  sanctu- 
ary; Counsel  me  aright,  and  fulfil  it,  along  with  all  my 

petitions This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have  been  written 

on  the  occasion  of  David  setting  out  with  his  army  against 
a  mighty  combination  of  foes. 

Psalm  xxl — This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have  been 
written  on  the  occasion  of  that  victory  over  the  Ammon- 
ites which  was  followed  up  by  such  appalling  severities 
on  the  conquered.  (2  Sam.  xii.  3L) . . .  Salvation  then  had  a 


20  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xxii. 

more  special  and  limited  sense  than  now — deliverance  from 
tlie  power  of  enemies,  which  on  this  particular  occasion 
had  heen  David's  heart's  desire,  and  the  request  of  his  lips. 
...  To  "  prevent  with  blessings,''  is  to  give  more  or  sooner 
than  one  had  been  seeking  or  working  for.  The  crown 
of  the  king  of  the  Ammonites  was  put  upon  his  head ;  and 
he  obtained  a  prolongation  of  his  life  and  house,  after  the 
great  sin  he  had  committed  in  the  matter  of  Uriah,  by 
which  both  might  have  been  righteously  forfeited. — Then 
follows  a  description  of  such  awful  cruelties  as  had  been 

pei-petrated  on  the  poor  children  of  Ammon There  is 

much  in  the  history  of  David  as  a  warrior  which  seiwes 
to  throw  light  on  his  maledictions;  and  which  might 
perhaps  supply  a  principle  on  which  they  might  be  pal- 
liated or  vindicated,  at  least  as  far  as  war  is  capable  of 
being  so. 

Psalm  xxii.  1-10. — This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have 
been  written  amid  the  hot  persecution  of  Saul  his  enemy. 
Its  title  is  not  well  understood :  in  English  it  is  the 
''  Hind  of  the  Morning,"  which  seems  so  inapplicable  to 
the  subject-matter  of  the  psalm,  as  to  warrant  the  hypo- 
thesis of  its  being  merely  the  name  of  the  tune  to  which 
it  was  sung.  However  this  may  be,  it  was  obviously 
composed  at  a  time  of  deep  dejection;  and  the  applica- 
tion of  its  very  first  words  by  our  Saviour  on  the  Cross  to 
his  o^^Ti  mysterious  sufferings,  gives  a  certain  dread  and 
august  solemnity  to  the  outset  of  a  psalm,  which  all  over 
is  full  of  Christ.  Its  character  as  a  typical  composition  is 
fully  authenticated  by  the  quotations  from  it  in  the  New 
Testament.  David  and  the  Son  of  David  are  intermingled 
throughout;  and  in  such  a  way,  that  sometimes  the  type, 


PSALM  XXII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  21 

and  sometimes  the  antit}q3e,  is  the  more  prominent  of  the 
two.  Wlio  can  mistake,  for  example,  the  application  of 
the  seventh  and  eighth  verses  to  the  historical  scene  of  our 
Lord's  crucifixion?  On  the  other  hand,  there  are  verses 
which,  of  themselves,  would  not  carry  us  beyond  their 
primary  sense,  as  felt  and  uttered  by  him  who  spoke  them 
at  the  first — as  David's  appeal  to  God's  dealings  with  the 
former  generations  of  Israel.  There  is  also  a  very  distinct 
reference  to  his  own  personal  fortunes,  in  the  acknowledg- 
ment which  he  makes  of  all  God's  care  and  goodness  to 
him  from  his  birth  up.  The  deep  piety  pervades  both  the 
type  and  its  countei*part. — "  Holy  Father  "  came  direct 
from  the  lips  of  our  Saviour  on  earth ;  "  But  Thou  art  holy/' 
says  the  Psalmist,  "  0  Thou  that  inhabitest  the  praises 
of  Israel ! " 

Barnsmuir. 

11-18. — The  type  and  the  antitype  are  closely  blended 
in  this  passage.  If  David  was  abandoned  by  many,  Christ 
was  abandoned  by  all — even  by  His  twelve  disciples,  who 
all  forsook  him  and  fled.  If  David  was  beleaguered  in  the 
midst  of  enemies,  so  also  was  Christ,  both  at  the  tribunal 
of  the  high-priest,  and  when  suspended  on  the  Cross, 
when  they  gaped  upon  Him  with  their  mouths,  and 
poured  forth  upon  Him  their  mockery  and  derision.  And 
the  personal  suiferings  here  described  are  more  specially 
applicable  to  the  blessed  Sa\dour — to  His  agonies.  His 
exhaustion,  His  thirst,  and  all  the  various  sensations  of 
that  dark  and  awful  period,  when  He  bare  our  sins  upon 
the  tree.  But  the  most  express,  and  indeed  exclusive  re- 
ferences to  Him — fortified,  moreover,  by  the  distinct  men- 
tion of  them  in  the  New  Testament — are  the  parting  of  His 
raiment,  and  the  piercing  of  his  hands  and  feet — evidence 


22  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xxiii. 

tlie  most  decisive  that  Christ  actually  is  in  this  Psalm,  and 
therefore  may  be  in  others  to  a  greater  extent  than  can 
be  gathered  or  defined  from  the  instances  in  the  later 
Scriptures. 

19-31. — Both  David  and  Christ  are  very  palpable  in 
these  verses.  Our  Saviour  cried  unto  God  with  suppli- 
cations and  tears.  He  prayed  both  for  his  own  deliverance 
and  that  of  His  elect  (perhaps  the  "  darling''  of  verse  20) 
from  enemies.  And  there  was  a  contest  that  we  know 
little  of — with  a  great  adversary,  at  the  head  of  principali- 
ties and  powers;  and  God  heard  him  when  he  prayed 
from  the  "  horns  of  the  unicorns'' — from  the  midst  of 
His  potent  adversaries.  We  have  very  express  authority 
for  the  application  of  verse  22  to  the  Saviour,  (Heb.  ii. 
12);  and  this  is  further  illustrated  in  John  xx.  17,  Rom. 
viii.  29. — Then  follows  a  call  upon  Israel,  not  inapplicable 
to  the  Church  in  all  ages ;  and  to  the  Church  it  is  that 
the  concluding  predictions  of  this  psalm  are  pre-eminently 
applicable — ^the  conversion  of  the  whole  world  unto  Him 
who  was  at  once  the  Lord  and  the  Son  of  David — the 
universal  helplessness  of  men  for  their  own  redemption, 
but  the  resort  of  many  unto  Him,  the  Saviour  of  souls ; 
and  so  a  seed  to  serve  Him — a  generation  of  true  wor- 
shippers— a  peculiar  people,  to  be  born  unto  God  from  all 
the  nations  of  the  earth. 

Psalm  xxiii. — This  psalm  is  one  of  the  most  precious 
gems  in  the  Church's  treasury  of  things  new  and  old — 
written,  it  is  thought,  by  David,  after  being  anointed  by 
Samuel,  (verse  5,)  and  having  had  the  prospect  given  to 
him  of  dwelling  in  the  house  of  the  Lord. — 0  that  I 
could  realize  the  peace  and  the  enjoyment  which  are  so 


PSALM  xxiy.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  23 

beautifully  imaged  forth  in  this  exquisite  ode  !  Wliat  I 
most  pray  for  and  most  need,  is  the  restoration  of  my 
soul, — Thou  knowest,  0  God,  how  liable  it  is  to  be  un- 
hinged by  controversy,  and  led  away  by  the  instigations, 
if  not  laid  prostrate  under  the  power  of  those  base  and 
evil  affections  which  war  against  the  soul.  Recover  me, 
0  Lord,  from  all  the  snares  of  the  devil,  and  cause  me 
henceforth  to  walk  in  charity  and  holiness,  even  to  the 
end  of  my  days.  My  death  is  rapidly  approaching — pre- 
pare me,  0  God,  for  the  encounter.  Under  the  care  and 
keeping  of  Him  who  is  the  Shepherd  and  Bishop  of  souls, 
let  me  fear  no  evil ;  and  let  Thy  goodness  and  Thy  mercy 
follow  me  to  the  end. 

Psalm  xxiv. — This,  too,  is  a  most  illustrious  psalm ;  first 
recognising  the  Supreme  as  the  Lord  of  Creation,  and  then 
as  Lord  more  peculiarly  of  His  own  people  joining  to- 
gether in  the  services  of  the  Church  to  celebrate  His  holy 
name.  Under  this  latter  division,  the  question  is  put  as 
to  the  personal  qualifications  of  those  who  should  draw 
near  to  God  in  the  sanctuary. — 0  give  me.  Almighty 
Father,  the  pure  heart ;  and  let  me  beware  of  the  idols 
that,  were  I  to  give  way  to  nature,  would  so  soon  and  so 
miserably  lord  it  over  me.  Let  holiness  and  integrity 
and  truth  so  characterize  as  to  mark  me  for  Thine  own, 
and  of  the  generation  that  serve  and  seek  the  God  of 

Jacob This  sublime  ode  is  conceived  to  have  been  sung 

in  parts  on  the  introduction  of  the  Ark  into  the  sanctuary 
that  had  been  prepared  for  it.  One  can  image  nothing 
more  magnificent  than  these  closing  verses,  set  to  music, 
and  sung  in  prescribed  order  by  the  Priests  and  Levites 
and  general  congregation. 


24  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xxv. 

Psalm  xxv.  1-7. — This  psalm,  though  in  danger  of 
being  overshaded  by  the  pre-eminence  of  the  two  which 
go  before,  is  really  one  of  the  richest  and  most  savouiy 
in  the  w^hole  collection.  It  is  understood  to  have  been 
written  in  a  season  of  great  domestic  affliction,  as  well  as 
formidable  hostility  from  mthout.  But,  as  in  all  similar 
trials,  he  lifts  up  his  soul  unto  God:  he  prays  w4th  a 
reference  to  his  enemies ;  and  waits  upon  the  Lord  both 
for  deliverance  and  for  direction.  But  he  prays  also  for 
his  0"\\ai  moral  and  spiritual  wellbeing,  and  evidently  under 
the  deepest  consciousness  of  being  a  sinner.  How  pre- 
cious are  these  petitions,  both  in  the  substance  and  the 
words  of  them — "  Shew  me  Thy  ways  ;''  "  Teach  me  Thy 
paths;''  "lead  me  in  Thy  truth,  and  teach  me.'' — 0  let 
me  wait  upon  God  all  the  day  for  the  fulfilment  of  these 
things.  And  what  a  fine  attitude  for  the  creature  towards 
the  Creator — that  of  waiting  on  Him.  Let  this  be  my 
constant  position  and  constant  exercise;  and  surely  well 
may  I  join  with  David  in  his  cry  for  mercy:  "  Remember 
not  the  sins  of  my  youth,  nor  my  transgressions,  0  God." 

Anstruther,  September,  1845. 

8-22. — Then  follow  the  ascriptions  of  the  Psalmist  to 
God. — Let  us  thence  gather  that  the  wrath  of  man  neither 
worketh  righteousness,  nor  leadeth  to  a  way  of  wisdom. 
It  is  the  meek,  and  not  the  wrathful,  that  He  guides  and 
teaches;  and  the  effect  of  this  teaching  from  above  is 
the  meekness  of  wisdom,  or  rather  the  wisdom  of  meek- 
ness   And  what  a  precious  evangelical  conjunction  is 

here  stated  between  mercy  and  truth ;  and  then  how  com- 
pletely it  proves  that  God's  ways  are  not  as  man's  ways ; 
and  how  great  the  encouragement  to  tnvst  in  Him,  when 


PSALM  xxvr.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  25 

we  read  of  the  pleas  for  forgiveness  which.  Himself  hath 
dictated — even  that  our  iniquity  is  great.  The  fear  of 
the  Lord  is  a  precursor  to  a  right  understanding  of  His 
v»'ay.  And  0  how  pregnant  with  importance  of  meaning, 
that  "  the  secret  of  the  Lord  is  with  them  that  fear  Him/' 
and  that  ''He  will  show  them  His  covenant!'' — Then 
follows  the  Psalmist's  importunate  prayer. — Give  me  to 
imitate  the  habitual  posture  of  his  soid,  in  that  his  ''  eyes 
were  ever  towards  the  Lord"  How  often  he  prays  that 
he  may   not  be  ashamed,    as  if  he    longed   to    recover 

from  the  shame  of  his  fall A  psalm  of  great  weight  ar,d 

substance. 

Psalm  xxvi. — This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have  boor 
written  in  early  life,  and  there  is  certainly  a  resemblanco 
between  it  and  the  first  Psalm.  It  is  like  the  application 
to  himself  here  of  what  he  had  generally  described  tnero 
He  appeals  for  his  integrity  to  God; — I  slide  because  T 
trust  not.  It  is  a  precious  prayer  to  be  examined  and 
proved  and  tried ;  and  the  result  in  my  case  will  be  a  more 
thorough  conviction  of  my  own  vileness.  I  have  not 
walked  in  Thy  truth ;  yet  I  will  not  let  go  my  hold  on  Thy 
loving-kindness.  Save  me,  0  God,  from  the  company  of 
the  vain  and  hypocritical ;  and  let  the  wickedness  of  the 
wicked  be  far  from  me.  I  have  compassed  Thine  altar, 
even  officiated  there,  and  yet  not  washed  my  hands  in  in- 
nocency.  Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  extricate  my  affections 
from  things  below,  and  set  them  on  the  place  where  Thine 
honour  dwelleth.  Let  me  not  be  gathered,  when  I  come 
to  die,  with  sinners  or  men  of  violence :  but  let  me  die 
the  death  of  the  righteous.  0  grant  me  redemption  and 
mercy  ;  I  stand  in  need  of  both — of  a  forgiveness  by  the 

VOL.  III.  c 


26  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         psalm  xxviir. 

blood  of  Christ : — grant  me  this,  and  then  let  me  walk  in 
mine  integrity.  Then  only  will  my  feet  stand  in  an  even 
place,  and  with  an  luidistnrbed  conscience  join  in  the 
exercise  of  Thy  worshipping  assemblies.  I  desire  to  be 
humbled  unto  the  dust ;  and  well  may  I  call  out,  "  Pardon 
mine  iniquity,  for  it  is  great/' 

Psalm  xxvii. — This  is  a  most  congenial  psalm,  though  the 
two  parts  of  it  seem  to  have  been  placed  together  by  mis- 
take, being  different  both  in  their  strains  of  sentiment  and 
in  their  versification.  To  the  seventh  verse,  the  langaiage  is 
that  of  security ;  and  from  that  verse,  it  speaks  of  hostility 
and  danger.  In  both  states,  however,  it  is  with  the  Lord 
that  David  holds  communion,  whether  in  thankful  ac- 
knowledgment or  in  prayer.  In  the  joyful  celebration  of 
the  first  half,  the  Lord  is  all  the  salvation  and  confidence 
of  the  Psalmist ;  and  he  there  tells  of  the  overthrow  of 
his  enemies.  And  his  desire  is  towards  the  Lord  and  his 
holy  services ;  and  the  unshaken  faith  of  his  heart  is  in 
the  sure  help  of  the  Almighty  against  all  that  is  most 
formidable  or  menacing  around  him. — 0  to  be  hid  in 
the  pavilion  of  the  Most  High,  and  in  the  secret  of  His 
tabernacle,  and  to  be  established  as  on  a  rock !  And 
when  distress  comes,  may  I  seek  unto  Thee,  and  be  tauglit 
and  led  of  Thee,  and  be  sustained  by  the  hope  of  Thy 
goodness,  and  wait  on  the  Lord  for  courage  and  strength 

in  times  of  controversy A  psalm  to  feed  upon,  and  to 

be  helped  with  in  prayer. 

Psalm  xxviii. — This  psalm  is  conceived  to  have  been 

written  in  the  very  midst  of  David's  persecutions  by  Saul 

. .  The  "  holy  oracle/'  or  oracle  of  God's  sanctuaiy,  may  still 


PSALM  XXIX.  DAILY  SCRirTURE  READINGS.  27 

be  regarded  as  tlie  place  whence  tlie  answers  to  prayer 

come He  was  sadly  beset  by  the  treacheries  of  men  to 

whom  he  had  done  sendee,  and  who  kept  up  the  semblance 
of  regard  to  him — speaking  peace,  yet  devising  mischief.  I 
can  enter  more  into  the  maledictions  and  adverse  prayers 
of  David,  when  I  view  him  as  a  man  of  war ;  for  if  war  be 
lawful  at  all,  surely  one  might  wish  for  victory  as  well  as 
fight  for  it ;  na}^,  might  pray  for  victory,  which  is  tantamount 
to  praying  for  the  defeat  of  enemies.  How  applicable  still 
to  the  infidelity  of  the  present  day,  the  saying — "that  it 
regards  not  the  Lord,  nor  the  operation  of  His  hands.'' . . . 
Ine  upshot  of  his  prayers  in  the  former  part  of  this  psalm, 
is  the  deliverance  which  he  celebrates  in  the  latter  part; 
and  of  many  such  enlargements  do  we  read  in  the  history 
ot  i/avid. — Let  me  tiTist  as  he  did,  and  I  shall  be  helped  as 
ne  was.  The  Lord  is  the  strength  of  His  people,  and  the 
strength,  also,  of  His  anointed.  By  this  time  David  had 
neen  set  apart  for  the  monarchy  of  Israel,  and  he  prays 
iiKe  a  monarch To  "  feed''  may  also  signify  to  rule. 

Burntisland. 

Psalm  xxix. — This  is  a  truly  noble  hymn,  and  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  "WT-itten  by  David  after  the  full  estab- 
lishment and  security  of  his  kingdom  from  enemies  abroad. 
Such  acts  and  expressions  of  the  homage  here  uen- 
dered  to  the  true  God,  are  conceived  to  have  been  pecu- 
liarly called  for,  as  a  counteractive  to  the  infidelity  that 
was  professed  by  a  powerful  party  at  home;  but  surely 
irrespective  of  this,  and  without  the  necessity  of  any  such 
hypothesis,  we  may  well  imagine  of  this  pious  monarch, 
tnat  under  the  spontaneous  impulse  of  his  own  feelings, 
tiiough  both  the  impulse  and  consequent  utterance  were 


28  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xxx. 

given  by  inspiration,  lie  gave  birth,  to  this  glorious  effu- 
sion, both  as  the  native  forthgoing  of  his  own  heart,  and 
for  the  purpose  of  sustaining  and  elevating  the  devotion 
of  all  God's  worshippers.  However  this  may  be,  we  feel 
that,  without  any  amplification  or  vain  attempt  at  en- 
hancement, this  lofty  and  sacred  composition  had  far  better 
be  left  to  itself — Give  me  both  to  relish  and  exemplify,  0 

Lord,  the  beauty  of  holiness In  verse  6,  they  are  perhaps 

the  cedars  of  Lebanon  and  Sirion  which  are  meant It 

may  be  the  lightning  that  is  adverted  to  in  verse  7 In 

verse  9,  "  making  the  hinds  to  calve,''  is  rendered  by  Dr. 
Mason  Good,  "splitting  the  oaks/'. . .  The  conclusion  of  the 
psalm  suggests  the  prayer,  that  He  who  is  so  strong  and 
powerfid  in  the  kingdom  of  nature,  would  put  forth  His 
might  in  the  kingdom  of  grace ;  and  more  especially  that 
He  would  perfect  His  strength  in  our  weakness. 

Psalm  xxx. — This  psalm  seems  to  have  been  written  by 
David,  either  on  his  recovery  from  sickness  or  from  the  dan- 
ger of  death  at  the  hand  of  enemies,  or  perhaps  from  both. 
It  suits  well  the  hypothesis  of  its  being  framed  on  the  occa- 
sion of  his  victoiy  over  Absalom ;  in  which  case  the  strong- 
feelings  of  nature  must  have  been  overborne  by  the  insj^ir- 
ing  energy  under  which  he  A^Tote.  There  seems  the  com- 
memoration here  both  of  rescue  from  enemies,  and  of 
recovery  from  disease.  At  all  events,  there  are  very  pre- 
cious utterances  in  this  2:)salm,  and  of  peraianent  applica- 
tion   There  is  great  depth  of  sentiment  in  the  call  to 

"  give  thanks  at  the  remembrance  of  God's  holiness."  It 
implies  that  supreme  holiness  and  supreme  happiness  are 
essentially  intei-^'oven.  And  how  finely  brought  out  here 
is  the  false  confidence  in  the  day  of  prosperity — the  chas- 


PSALM  XXXI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  S9 

tisement  and  correction  thereof:  but  at  length  the  return 
of  God's  mercy,  when  humble  prayer  was  made  to  Him, 
so  that  joy  was  restored,  and  the  darkness  and  distress 
issued  in  praise  and  thanksgiving. 

Psalm  xxxi.  1-15. — This  psalm  is  thought  to  have  been 
composed  after  David  had  betaken  himself  to  the  wilder- 
ness of  Ziph,  and  so  effected  his  escape  from  the  treachery 
of  the  Keilites.  His  refuge  now  was  the  rock,  instead  of 
the  house  or  the  strong  city — (verse  2) — though  he  looks 
beyond  all  secondary  causes,  and  recognises  God  as  his 
Rock  and  his  Fortress.  He  was  pulled  out  of  the  net, 
and  redeemed  from  the  hands  of  the  men  whose  duplicity 
and  ingratitude  he  hated "VYith  what  enhanced  rever- 
ence do  we  read  the  first  clause  of  verse  5 — as  presenting 
us  with  the  very  words  which  Christ  uttered  on  the  cross. 
The  literal  application,  however,  predominates  on  the 
whole ;  and  most  strikingly  when  he  says,  that  God  had 
not  "  shut  him  up  into  the  hand  of  the  enemy,  but  set  his 
feet  in  a  large  room.''  Still  he  was  in  great  trouble,  and 
in  the  midst  of  hazards  great  and  manifold.  When  he 
says  that  his  "  strength  faileth  because  of  his  iniquity,"  he 
seems  rather  to  point  at  the  guilt  of  his  transgTession  in 
the  matter  of  Uriah,  followed  up  by  repeated  and  signal 
chastisements — so  that  instead  of  his  escape  from  Keilah, 
he  may  have  poured  forth  this  effusion  on  his  escape 
from  Jerusalem,  now  in  the  hands  of  the  friends  of  Absa- 
lom. It  is  likelier  Keilah,  however — (verse  21,  and  1  Sam. 
xxiii.  7) — though  both  suppositions  are  in  keeping  with 
lae  prayers  here  made  by  David  unto  God. 

Skirling. 

16-24. — He  was  sadly  tried  by  the  deceitfulness  of  old 


30  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xxxii. 

friends,  but  never  fails  to  take  refuge  in  God.  Tlie  sliame 
against  which  he  prays,  is  here  the  shame  of  defeat,  which 
shame  he  wants  to  be  transferred  to  his  enemies.  It  may 
at  times  be  the  shame  of  exposure,  that  he  may  not  be 
disgraced,  which  would  cause  his  enemies  to  triumph. 
The  former  shame  might  be  followed  up  by  death,  or 
silence  in  the  grave — the  latter  by  mortification,  followed 
up  by  the  silence  of  conscious  dishonour,  when  their  false- 
hoods had  been  made  manifest.  Doubtless,  in  his  seasons 
of  desertion,  he  had  both  the  pride  and  contempt  of  his 
enemies  to  endure.  But  how  blessed  his  expressions  of 
trust  and  security  in  God  ! — 0  to  be  hidden  from  the  strife 
of  tongues — that  in  Christ  I  may  have  peace,  when  in  the 
world  I  have  tribulation.  Let  God  be  our  retreat  and 
our  sanctuaiy,  and  we  need  not  fear  what  man  can  do 
unto  us.  God  shows  us  mar\^ellous  kindness  in  a  strong 
city,  when  He  appoints  salvation  to  us  for  walls  and 
bulwarks.  (Isa.  xxvi.  1.)  Let  us  not,  on  the  impulse  of 
sudden  despondency,  cast  our  confidence  away  from  us ; 
but  strengthen  our  hearts  in  the  God  who  is  our  hope, 
and  whom,  because  we  tmst  in  Him,  we  love. 

Psalm  xxxii. — Tliis  might  well  have  been  -wiitten  on 
the  restoration  of  his  soul,  after  the  great  transgression 
in  the  matter  of  Uriah.  It  is  a  psalm  full  of  evangelical 
savour  and  comfort. — My  God,  let  me  forget  not,  that  to 
realize  the  blessedness  here  spoken  of,  not  only  must  my 
sin  be  pardoned,  but  in  my  spirit  there  must  be  no  guile. 
Let  me  not  put  asunder  the  things  which  God  hath  joined. 
So  long  as  he  confessed  not  his  sin  his  misery  was  ex- 
treme; but  at  length  he  confessed,  and  was  forgiven. 
He  prayed  to  God,  who  proved  his  hiding-place,  and 


PSALM  XXXIII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  31 


compassed  him  about  witli  songs  of  deliverance.  But  it 
is  not  enough  that  sin  be  confessed — it  must  be  forsaken  ; 
and,  accordingly,  after  the  pardon  is  granted,  and  the  re- 
conciliation entered  on,  there  is  a  process  of  instruction 
that  must  be  gone  through,  and  practically  followed. 
God  hath  promised  His  aid,  and  tells  us  not  to  resist  His 
lessons.  The  justification  and  the  sanctification  are  in- 
separable —  The  wicked  are  contrasted  in  verse  10  with 
those  who  tmst  in  the  Lord :  and  they  who  so  trust  will 
cease  from  their  wickedness  :  and  so  at  the  beoinnino-  of 
the  psalm  it  is  the  blessedness  of  them  who  are  forgiven 
that  is  celebrated;  whereas  at  the  end  of  it,  it  is  the 
blessedness  of  them  who  are  j)ersonallj  righteous. 

Psalm  xxxiii.  1-9. — This  is  a  psalm  of  triumph,  and  it  is 
supposed  to  have  been  written  after  David's  first  great  vic- 
toiy  over  the  Philistines,  when  king  of  Jei-usalem.  And  he 
does  not  confine  himself  to  the  celebration  of  the  Almighty 
for  His  help  in  war ;  he  makes  mention  of  His  general 
faithfulness,  and  righteousness,  and  goodness,  and  power ; 
he  does  homage  to  Him  both  as  the  God  of  nature  and 
the  God  of  Providence ;  he  goes  back  to  the  primary 
act  of  Creation,  and  speaks  of  it  as  done  by  the  Word 
— ^true,  both  in  the  sense  of  God  having  "  said  and  it  was 
done  :''  and  tnie  also  in  the  sense  of  its  beino-  the  Lo^-os 
— the  Eternal  Son,  by  whom  He  created  all  things.  He 
also  brought  order  out  of  confusion  by  the  breath  or  spirit 
of  His  mouth,  and  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  too,  moving  on  the 
face  of  the  waters  at  the  first — educing  then  harmony 
out  of  the  material  chaos;  and  out  of  the  moral  chaos  still 
educing  what  will  prepare  for  the  new  heavens  and  the 
new  earth,  wherein  dwelleth  righteousness.     But  in  what 


3»  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         psalm  xxxtu. 

He  hatli  evinced  of  powei  and  lordship  already,  in  having 
made  the  earth  and  sea,  and  all  that  are  therein,  all  the 
>yorld  is  called  upon  to  worship  and  stand  in  awe  of  Him. 
10-22. — He  now  speaks  of  God  as  the  Governor  of  the 
world,  having  before  spoken  of  Him  as  its  Creator.  God's 
way  and  will  must  carry  it  over  all  the  conspiracies  of  all 
the  nations  ;  and  should  He  favour  one  of  these  nations, 
all  the  hostile  designs  or  eiiorts  of  the  others  can  be  of  no 
effect.  God  knows  most  thoroughly  the  hearts  of  men, 
>vhich  Himself  hath  fashioned — and  He  consider  from 
their  works  whether  they  have  chosen  or  rejected  Him  as 
their  God ;  and  His  eye  or  favour  is  upon  them  whose 
God  is  the  Lord,  and  who  at  once  both  fear  Him  and 
trust  Him — revering  His  authority,  and  justice,  and 
power,  while  they  hope  in  His  mercy.  In  defence  of  such 
a  nation  He  will  prevail  over  the  most  formidable  armies, 
however  composed,  or  whatever  be  their  number  and 
prowess.  In  the  confidence  of  this,  David,  at  the  head  of 
His  chosen  people,  waits  upon  God,  and  relies  upon  Him 
ijor  help  and  safety.  He  realizes  both  qualifications  of 
fear  and  hope.  ^Ye  see  him  in  the  concluding  verses, 
both  observant  of  God  as  his  rightful  Governor,  and  yet 
rejoicing  in  Him  as  his  Father  and  Friend.  He  had 
oefore  said  that  ''  the  eye  of  the  Lord  was  for  good  upon 
them  that  hoped  in  His  mercy ;''  and  now  professing 
Himself  to  be  one  of  such,  he  prays  that  God's  mercy 
Liight  be  upon  him  and  his  people,  according  as  they 
iioped  in  Him. — Give  us,  0  Lord,  to  conjoin  such  a  hope 
with  such  a  fear — a  fear  compatible  with  trust,  and  so 
not  the  fear  of  terror,  but  the  fear  of  reverence. 

Psalm  xxxiv.  1-9. — The  occasion  of  this  psalm  is  mi- 


PSALM  XXXIV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READLNGS.  33 

nutely  specified  in  a  prefatory  note  whicli  I  believe  is  not 

questioned It  is  interesting  to  contrast  the  secret  and 

real  witli  the  ostensible  state  of  David  at  this  period.  It 
was  a  time  of  great  humiliation  in  the  eyes  of  men,  yet  a 
time  of  triumph  and  security  in  God ;  and  so  he  blessed 
Him  at  this  as  at  all  times.  His  immediate  deliverance 
from  the  hands  of  Saul  was  the  topic  of  his  gratitude  and 
gratulation.  How  delightful  to  follow  him  in  the  lan- 
guage of  his  holy  confidence,  in  his  sense  of  safety  under 
the  guardianship  that  was  over  him  from  above — in  his 
consciousness  that  God  was  with  him,  and  that  the  angels 
of  God  were  to  him  the  ministers  of  protection  and  de- 
fence !  "We  see  here,  in  the  testimony  which  he  lifts  up 
for  God,  how  beautifully  combined  the  trust  and  the  fear 
are  with  each  other.  Under  the  one  sentiment  we  recog- 
nise the  Divine  goodness ;  under  the  other  the  Divine 
truth  and  power.  Both  meet  together  in  the  expression 
— that  "  there  is  no  want  to  them  who  fear  Him.'' 

10-22. — He  proceeds  to  unfold  the  character  and  deal- 
ings of  God — as  the  bountiful  Rewarder  of  those  who 
seek  Him ;  but,  at  the  same  time,  as  having  respect  unto 
all  their  ways.  And  so  he  lessons  us  in  the  fear  of  God, 
which,  if  it  really  operate  within  our  hearts,  will  lead  us 
to  sin  not.  "  Stand  in  awe,  and  sin  not !''...  The  good  of 
our  temporal  life,  both  then  and  now,  and  more  distinctly 
the  good  of  our  eternal  life  now,  hinge  upon  our  deport- 
ment and  doings  in  this  world. — My  God,  enable  me  to 
bridle  my  tongue,  to  lay  a  restraint  upon  those  ebullitions 
which  I  am  too  apt  to  indulge  in ;  and,  as  far  as  possible, 
as  much  as  lieth  in  me,  to  live  peaceably  with  all  men. 
Let  me  but  trust  and  obey — trust  in  the  Lord,  and  be 
doing  good  ;  and  His  ears  will  ever  be  open  unto  my  cry. 


34  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xxxv. 


The  distinction  between  the  good  and  the  evil,  the  right- 
eous and  the  wicked,  is  as  palpable,  and  should  practi- 
cally be  as  much  proceeded  on  under  the  new  covenant 
as  under  the  old.  But  how  manifold,  alas  !  are  my  defi- 
ciencies ;  yet  let  me  not  despair — for  the  Lord  is  nigh 
unto  them  that  are  of  a  broken  heart,  and  saveth  such 
as  be  of  a  contrite  spirit.  Thou  wilt  deliver  me,  0  God, 
out  of  all  my  troubles :  I  may  be  cast  do^^Ti,  but  not 
destroyed.  I  meet  with  sore  bruises ;  but  let  my  confi- 
dence be  this — that  not  a  bone  of  me  shall  be  broken. 

Psalm  xxxv.  1-16. — Dr.  Mason  Good  looks  upon  this 
psalm  as  ha^4ng  been  Avritten  during  the  history  of 
David  as  recorded  in  1  Sam.  xviii.  17-30.  At  all  events, 
we  have  in  these  psalms  the  secret  of  David's  good  con- 
duct, and  of  his  mar^^ellous  escapes  from  the  hand  of 
desio'nino;  enemies.  We  see  him  dailv  exercised  unto 
godliness  ;  and  in  answer  to  his  prayers,  he  received  both 
wisdom  and  protection  from  Him  to  whom  he  was  in  the 
habit  of  resorting  continually.  He  prayed  that  his  cause 
might  be  pled  with  Saul,  and  fought  with  the  Philistines. 
There  were  many  who  sought  his  life,  and  devised  mis- 
chief against  him — the  court  flatterers  of  the  Israelitish 
monarch,  and  the  abettors  of  his  cruel  policy.  Doubtless 
the  expressions  here  used  may  be  well  applied  in  charac- 
terizing their  wiles,  and  their  conspiracy  against  the  life 
of  David — "  Without  cause  they  hid  their  net ''  for  him  ; 
and  "  without  cause  they  digged  for  his  soul.'' ...  I  begin 
more  and  more  to  see  the  maledictions  of  David  in  a 
dift'erent  liffht :  thev  are  directed  ao-ainst  those  who 
were  his  enemies  in  war,  or  who  were  plotting  in  secret 
for  his  assassination.     If  it  be  la^-ful  to  fisfht  or  to  strive 


PSALM  XXXV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READLXGS.  3$ 

against  tliese,  even  unto  their  death,  or  shameful  over- 
throw, is  it  not  lawful  to  pray  against  them  to  the 
same  extent  ?  And  his  prayer  was  at  length  heard — for 
though  only  in  prospect  as  yet,  he  could  predict  with 
confidence  that  his  soul  should  be  joyful  in  the  Lord, 
and  should  rejoice  in  being  saved  by  Him  from  his 
enemies The  verses  11-16  I  hold  to  be  literally  applic- 
able to  David ;  and  though  applicable  to  Christ  also,  I 
can  scarce  agree  with  Horsley  in  thinking  that  they 
apply  more  literally  and  exactly  to  Him  than  to  any 
other. 

17-28. — But  the  application  to  our  Saviour  brightens 
as  we  proceed.  It  seems  quite  clear  that  Psalm  xxii.  20 
was  spoken  by  Him ;  and  this  is  nearly  identical  with 
verse  17  here.  There  is  the  same  analogy  between  xxii. 
22,  and  our  verse  18.  And  to  complete  the  proof,  the 
clause  in  verse  19 — "  that  hate  me  without  a  cause,''  is 
expressly  quoted  and  applied  by  the  Apostle  (John  xv. 
25)  to  Jesus  Christ ;  or  rather,  He  whose  discourse  is 
there  recorded  applies  it  to  Himself.  Yet  David  appears 
palpably  and  prominently  enough  in  the  verses  that  fol- 
low :  he  makes  a  vivid  representation  of  his  state  as 
surrounded  by  contemptuous,  and  proud,  and  resentful 
enemies — from  whom  he  as  usual  turns  him  for  help  to 
the  God  on  whom  all  his  confidence  was  laid.  He  doubt- 
less prays  against  them ;  yet,  if  it  was  right  in  him  to 
defend  himself  against  them,  and  attempt  such  an  expo- 
sure of  their  falsehood  and  malice  as  would  bring  tliem 
to  shame — could  it  be  wrong  in  him  to  pray  for  this  con- 
summation— to  pray  that  they  should  be  ashamed  and 
brought  to  confusion  who  rejoiced  at  his  hurt — even  as 
he  prayed  that  they  should  triumph  and  be  joyful  who 


3<j  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        psalm  xxxvir. 

favoured  his  righteous  cause?. . .  I  am  strongly  inclined  to 
the  theory  of  a  progressive  moral  education,  from  age  to 
age,  as  the  explanation  both  of  David's  imprecations,  and 
other  examples  of  a  rude  and  defective,  yet  tolerated 
morality,  in  the  ages  before  him. 

Psalm  xxxvi. — This  psalm,  according  to  Mason  Good, 

corresponds  with  the  history  in  1  Sam.  xix.  4-7 David 

is  still  in  trouble,  and  compassed  about  with  the  machi- 
nations of  wicked  and  ungodly  men.  In  the  description 
of  such,  he  presents  us  with  one  lineament  which  we 
would  do  well  to  profit  by.  It  might  warn  our  conscience 
when  asleep  in  the  midst  of  such  secret  indulgences  as, 
if  exposed  and  laid  open,  would  bring  down  upon  us  the 
contempt  and  hatred  of  society.  The  words  are  those  of 
verse  2;  and  there  is  a  mischief  of  another  kind  than  that 
of  violence,  which  one  might  devise  and  dwell  upon  in  his 
bed,  and  which  marks  him  who  can  even  think  of  it  with 
toleration  as  one  that  abhorreth  not  evil.  Our  best  es- 
cape from  all  such  imaginings  is  such  a  contemplation  of 
God  alone  as  is  here  set  before  us. — In  the  blessed  con- 
junction of  Thy  mercy  and  Thy  righteousness  let  me  ever, 
0  Lord,  rejoice.  Make  me  to  drink  of  the  river  of  Thy 
pleasures  ;  and  in  Thy  light  may  I  see  light.  Make  me 
upright  in  heart,  and  give  me  to  increase  in  the  know- 
ledge of  Thyself.  Give  me  to  have  peace  in  Thee,  amid 
the  world's  tribulations. 

Psalm  xxxvii.  1-10. — This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have 
been  written  by  David  during  the  evening  of  his  days, 
and  when  at  rest  from  all  his  enemies  ; — more  a  psalm  of 
general  instruction  in  piety  and  righteousness  than  of  an 


PSALM  XXXVII.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  37 

occasional  character.     I  delight  in  it  greatly,  both  for  the 
truth  of  principle  and  the  experimental  wisdom  which 

mark  its  lessons The  dissuasive  against  fretfulness  is 

most  strikingly  and  peculiarly  applicable  to  myself ;  and 
as  grounded,  too,  on  the  consideration,  that  they  against 
whom  I  fret  will  soon  be  brought  to  a  common  reckoning 
with  myself  "  Grudge  not  one  against  another :  the 
judge  is  at  the  door.''  "  Do  all  things  without  murmur- 
ings  and  disputings.''. . .  To  "trust  in  the  Lord  and  do  good,'" 
is  a  comprehensive  description  of  what  subjective  Chris- 
tianity is  in  the  general,  as  made  up  of  faith  and  works ; 
but  it  also  has  a  special  application  here  to  the  case  of 
those  antagonists  whose  will  or  opinion  is  at  the  time  wrong- 
ously  carrying  it  over  ours.  God,  if  we  but  tnist  in  Him, 
and  do  His  will,  may  do  us  justice  even  on  this  side  of  death 
—giving  us  even  here,  if  we  but  delight  in  Him,  those  other 
objects  of  delight  on  which  our  worthy  and  good  desires 
are  set — bringing  to  pass  the  way  as  we  want  it,  if  we  but 
commit  it  to  Him — and  making  the  goodness  of  our  cause 
manifest  to  all  men.  Meanwhile,  let  us  be  still  in  God, 
and  wait  patiently  for  the  further  evolutions  of  His  Pro- 
vidence, and  fret  not  ourselves  because  of  the  temporary 
influence  and  advantage  over  us  which  are  possessed  by 
other  men.  Let  me  in  nowise  fret  against  them,  or  in- 
dulge in  that  wrath  which  worketh  not  the  righteousness 
of  God.  If  our  counsel  be  His  counsel,  it  shall  stand  and 
be  established.  Let  me  in  all  cares,  therefore,  and  cogi- 
tations about  what  is  best  for  our  Free  Church,  ever  ex- 
ercise myself  unto  godliness ;  possessing  my  soul  in 
patience,  because  assured  that,  if  the  counsel  of  them  who 
are  opposed  be  not  of  God,  it  will  come  to  nought. 

11-20.— Give  me  the  grace  of  meekness,  0  Lord;  I 


38  DAILY  SCRirTURE  READINGS.        psalm  xxxvii. 


sliall  not  have  less  of  standing  ground  for  mj  own  counsel 
and  views  in  consequence.  And  0  for  peace,  for  peace 
against  enemies,  and  above  all  for  tlie  abundance  of  tliat 
peace  in  Christ  vrhich  He  hath  promised  to  His  disciples, 
while  He  warns  them  that  in  the  world  they  shall  have 

tribulations The  hostilities  which  David  experienced 

were  of  a  grosser  kind  than  those  by  which  I  am  exercised  : 
but  the  lessons  and  the  exercises  which  he  observes  or 
prescribes  under  them,  are  fully  applicable  to  controversies 
of  another  sort — such  as  the  confidence  that  whatever 
is  the  purpose  or  design  of  the  Lord,  that  shall  stand- — 
that  whatever  of  malice  or  artifice  has  been  employed 
against  those  of  upright  conversation,  will  in  His  good 
time  be  exposed  and  overthro^vm — the  superiority  which 
the  man  of  a  pure  and  honest  policy,  with  the  little  he 
yet  has  gained  for  it,  has  over  adversaries  of  another 
spirit,  though  for  the  present  carrying  all  before  them — 
the  certainty  of  a  final  triumph  for  all  that  is  right  and 
reasonable,  and  defeat  of  the  opposite. 

21-28. — May  I  be  willing  to  distribute,  and  ready  to 
communicate,  0  God:  and  enable  me  to  form  a  right  esti- 
mate of  my  fellow-men,  that  I  might  not  call  evil  good  and 
good  evil.  Thou  estimatest  aright,  and  disposest  aright, 
of  all  men  according  to  their  character  and  works.  Order 
my  steps  in  Thy  way,  and  thus  shall  I  delight  in  Thy  way 
made  my  way. — And  let  me  trust  in  the  Lord,  who  will 
sustain  me  in  the  walk  of  obedience,  and  will  not  leave 
either  me  or  mine  in  want  of  all  that  is  needful,  whether 
for  life  or  godliness.  Let  me  but  depart  from  evil  and  do 
good;  and  then  shall  I  be  established  and  abide  in  the 

house  of  my  God  for  ever The  judicial  righteousness 

which  Christ  hath  brought  in  supersedes  not  the  judg- 


PSALM  xxxvir.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  39 

ment  tliat  will  proceed  upon  men  according  to  tlieir  deeds ; 
and  thus  tliey  are  the  saints,  the  personally  good  and 
holy,  who  will  be  presented,  while  the  wicked  will  he  cut 
off. — For  the  joy  that  is  set  before  me,  0  God,  in  the  land 
which  Christ  hath  purchased  for  his  people,  may  I  throw 
aside  eA^eiy  weight,  and  the  sins  which  most  easily  beset 
me,  and  run  in  the  way  of  holiness  to  heaven  with  all 
perseverance. 

29-40. — Let  me  abstain  from  idle  words,  and  let  my 
speech  be  seasoned  with  grace  and  heavenly  wisdom. 
And  as  the  mouth  speaketh  out  of  the  abundance  of  the 
heart,  0  may  Thy  law  maintain  occupation  and  ascen- 
dency there,  and  then  shall  I  delight  myself  greatly  in 
Thy  commandments.  Thus  shall  I  be  delivered  from  the 
snares  and  machinations  of  all  adversaries,  if  I  but  wait 
on  the  Lord,  and  keep  His  way.  Why  should  I  feel  dis- 
comfiture or  discomfort  in  their  temporaiy  prevailings, 
when  there  is  such  a  patent  way  of  overcoming  them  who 
are  opposed  to  me — even  by  steadily  persevering  in  the 
way  that  is  right,  and  committing  all  to  the  heavenly  wit- 
ness and  Counsellor  who  is  above  me.  The  prosperity  here 
held  out  to  the  righteous,  and  the  overthrow  of  the  wicked, 
have  their  decisive  and  most  emphatic  fulfilment  in  the 
day  of  that  final  judgment  which  assigns  their  respective 
destinations  throughout  eternity.  But  let  us  not  confine 
the  sayings  of  the  Psalmist  to  these.  In  his  eye  they  had 
their  verification  on  this  side  of  death.  This  was  the 
chief  if  not  the  sole  meaning  which  he  put  upon  them  ;  and 
it  is  a  meaning,  though  not  the  only  or  the  principal  one, 
which  may  still  be  put  upon  them  in  these  days.  God- 
liness has  even  now  the  promise  of  the  life  that  is  present 
as  well  as  of  the  life  that  is  to  come.     "We  have  peace  in 


40  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       psalm  xxxviii. 

Christ  even  in  the  midst  of  tribulation ;  though  it  holdjs 
pre-eminently  of  every  one  who  is  perfect  in  Him,  that  the 
end  of  that  man  is  peace. — Let  me  die  the  death  of  the 
righteous;  and  while  it  is  my  current  experience,  that 
the  Lord  is  my  strength  even  in  time — '*  in  the  time  of 
trouble/'  may  it  be  the  experience  of  my  death-bed,  that 
in  the  last  trouble,  and  amid  the  agonies  of  dissolution, 
He  is  my  helper,  and  the  strength  of  my  heart,  because 
my  trust  and  rejoicing  are  in  Him  as  my  everlasting 
portion. 

Psalm  xxxviii.  1-9. — There  seems  to  have  been  a  fear- 
ful prevalence  of  wickedness  and  infidelity  in  Israel  pre- 
vious to  the  breaking  out  of  Absalom's  rebellion,  and 
which  perhaps  may  have  prepared  the  way  for  it.  It  is 
highly  probable  that  David^s  own  great  and  flagrant  trans- 
gression may  have  both  spread  and  strengthened  this 
spirit  throughout  the  land,  and  hence  an  irreligious 
faction,  the  fruit  and  the  natural  penalty  of  his  own  de- 
linquency. He  seems  to  have  written  this  psalm  under 
the  pressure  of  these  accumulated  evils  which  bore  him 
down,  and  may  have  even  affected  his  health.  And  so 
he  lifts  up  the  prayer  of  one  who  felt  himself  a  sufierer 
because  of  sin,  or  because  of  God's  anger  and  his  own 
foolishness.  He  thus  gives  utterances  both  to  the  cries  of 
a  sufferer,  and  the  confessions  of  a  penitent  looking  upon 
his  very  disease  as  a  judicial  infliction  under  the  hand  of 
Him  who  was  laying  rebuke  and  chastisement  upon  him- 
self as  a  grievous  offender.  Nevertheless  he  turns  him 
to  the  God  by  whom  he  is  stricken,  kissing  the  rod  and 
Him  who  bath  appointed  it,  and  venting  forth  his  desires 
before  Him  in  supplications  and  prayers.      He  by  this 


PSALM  xxxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  41 

exercise,  too,  recalls  tlie  wholesome  recollection  of  his  own 
sinfulness,  as  in  the  title  of  the  psalm. 

10-22. — He  continues  the  description  of  his  state,  the 
distempers  of  his  o^vn  person,  the  desertion  of  his  friends, 
the  active  and  malicious  conspiracies  of  those  who  were 
deceitfully  plotting  against  both  his  kingdom  and  his  life. 
He  saw  what  was  devising  and  going  on  against  him,  but 
said  nothing.  He  made  no  remonstrances  mth  his  fel- 
low-men, but  made  his  requests  unto  God.  Nor  had  hope 
clean  gone  from  him.  It  is  true,  that  because  his  foot  had 
slipped,  his  enemies  did  magnify  themselves  ;  and  this  is 
the  cruel  advantage  given  by  any  misconduct  of  ours  to 
the  adversaries  of  truth  and  righteousness.  Meanwhile,  he 
himself  was  in  great  heaviness  of  heart  because  of  his  sin, 
and  of  the  scandal  that  he  had  brought  upon  the  cause 
of  God  and  of  goodness,  which  imparted  great  animation 
and  strength  to  them  who  were  opposed  to  him.  His 
repentant  and  returning  goodness  just  multiplied  his  ene- 
mies, and  made  them  all  the  more  fierce  against  him. 
They  hated  him  all  the  more  because  he  followed  the 
thing  that  was  good;  and,  hardest  to  bear,  they  to  whom 
he  had  done  service,  returned  him  evil  for  his  kindness. 
His  refuge  is  in  prayer ;  and  there  tiTily  did  his  wisdom 
and  his  strength  lie:  for  who  shall  harm  us  if  we  be  fol- 
lowers of  that  which  is  good? 

Psalm  xxxix. — This  psalm  is  ascribed  by  Mason  Good 
to  the  period  when  Ziklag  was  destroyed  by  the  Amalek- 
ites,  and  David's  family  taken  captive — though  it  seems 
to  agree  better  with  a  season  of  deep  sorrow  for  some  such 
recorded  sin  as  that  in  the  matter  of  Uriah,  when  the 
enemies  about  him  triumphed,  and  the  poor  mourner  felt 


42  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xl. 

constrained  to^  silence  in  their  presence.  But  lie  could 
not  keep  himself  long  from  the  utterance  of  what  was 
good ;  and  so,  in  the  fulness  of  his  heart,  gave  vent  to 
the  prayers  and  wise  maxims  of  piety.  Let  me  adopt 
these  prayers. — 0  that  I  proceeded  on  a  right  estimate 
of  the  brevity  and  the  vanity  of  those  interests  which  so 
much  engross  me !  Give  me  a  realizing  view  of  death. 
Let  me  not  set  my  heart  upon  this  world's  goods.  My 
heart  is  greatly  set  on  a  right  economy,  both  for  our 
Church  and  its  College ;  but  even  this  let  me  subordinate 
to  Thy  will,  and  take  the  perversities  and  oppositions  of 
men  as  trials  permitted  by  Thee,  and  under  which  it  is 
my  part  to  be  rightly  disciplined  and  exercised.  Let  me 
not  be  disquieted  in  vain . . . .  "  Surely  every  man  walketh 
in  a  vain  show,''  is  with  me  one  of  the  most  precious 
memorabilia  in  Scripture.  At  all  events,  let  me  follow 
the  Psalmist  in  turning  myself  to  God. — The  concluding 
sentiments  and  suj)plications  bespeak  one  who  had  fallen 
into  some  great  transgression,  and  was  in  tears  because 
of  it ;  and  at  the  same  time  was  suffering  under  some 
great  infliction  because  of  his  iniquity,  and  took  it  sub- 
missively as  the  doing  of  the  Lord. 

Psalm  xl. — We  have  positive  Apostolic  authority  for 
the  reference  of  this  psalm  to  Christ.  (Heb.  x.  5-9.)  And 
yet  how  much  more  palpably  applicable  in  many  of  its 
verses  to  David — though  even  in  these  we  do  not  need 
to  lose  sight  of  the  antitype  in  the  type.  For  did  not 
Christ  cry  unto  God  ?  and  was  not  He  plunged  into  the 
mire  of  a  deep  humiliation  ?  and  was  He  not  enlarged,  and 
brought  out  of  them  all  by  Him  who  raised  Him  from  the 
dead  ?  and  was  it  not  His  meat  and  His  drink  to  do  God's 


PSALM  xLi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  43 

will ;  and  also  to  declare  it  in  tlie  Cliurch,  bj  those  whom 
He  commissioned  to  go  abroad  over  the  earth,  and  who 
formed  a  great  company  of  publishers?  The  message 
wherewith  they  were  charged  was  indeed  a  message  of 
God's  loving-kindness — of  truth  met  with  mercy — of 
peace  in  fellowship  Avith  righteousness ! — Give  me,  0 
Lord,  to  love  Thy  salvation,  and  to  have  Thy  law  in  my 
heart.  In  myself  I  am  poor  and  needy;  but  I  would 
rejoice  in  Thee  as  God  in  Christ,  able  and  willing  to  help 
me.  0  shine  upon  me  speedily  mth  the  light  of  Thy 
reconciled  countenance. 

Home. 

Psalm  xll — We  must  not  only  compassionate  but  con- 
sider the  poor;  and  how  precious  are  the  promises  an- 
nexed to  our  doing  so — of  safety  from  our  enemies — of  the 
Divine  care  upon  our  sick-beds.  Yet,  after  having  done 
all,  we  are  unprofitable  servants ;  and  well  may  we  join  the 
Psalmist  in  prayer  for  the  health  of  these  our  guilty  and 
distempered  souls.  I  have  sinned :  my  God,  let  my  ways 
please  Thee,  and  then  shall  mine  enemies  be  at  peace. 
Are  there  none  waiting  for  my  death?     Let  me  think 

the  best,  and  have  the  charity  which  thinketh  no  evil 

This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have  been  written  after  the 
relief  which  he  got  from  Barzillai  and  others,  and  before 
the  defeat  of  Absalom ;  and  hence  a  blessing  on  those 
who  provided  for  his  necessities,  and  a  complaint  on  his 
treacherous  foes.  The  "  familiar  friend ''  is  supposed  to 
be  Ahithophel.  And  as  another  decisive  instance  of  the 
typical  character  of  these  psalms — our  Saviour  applies 

.  verse  9  to  Himself  in  John  xiii.  18 David's  prayer  is 

that  of  a  warrior  against  his  enemies ;  and  the  confidence 
that  he  here  expresses  in  God  was  not  put  to  shame. 


44  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  p.sai.m  xuir. 

Psalm  xlii. — Tliis  psalm  is  supposed  to  have  been 
written  at  the  time  of  David's  flight  from  Absalom,  and 
before  he  crossed  Jordan.  It  is  throughout  a  most 
beautiful  and  affecting  aspiration,  and  exj^ressive  of  a 
determined  longing  after  God,  and  a  cleaving  unto  Him 
under  all  his  trials. — Let  me  thus  thirst  after  God ;  and 
as  David  mourned  over  his  present  exile  from  the  sanc- 
tuary, may  I  seek  for  spiritual  fellowship  with  God  in  the 
place  where  His  honour  dwelleth.  And  let  me  along 
with  him  rebuke  my  heaviness — chide  the  despondency  of 

my  spirit,  and  still  trust  in  the  li"\mig  God Verse  6  is 

in  keeping  with  the  conceived  occasion  of  this  most  im- 
pressive ode.  And  with  all  the  ten-ors  and  troubles  by 
which  he  was  surrounded,  David  does  not  let  go  his  faith 
and  hope,  but  mingles  these  with  all  his  complaints  and 
remonstrances — because  of  the  oppression  of  the  enemy. 
He  still  cleaves  to  God  as  his  Rock,  even  at  the  very 
time  when  disposed  to  question  the  reason  of  his  having 
been  forgotten.  It  was  a  ci-uel  aggravation  of  his  suffer- 
ings when  his  enemies  interpreted  his  misfortunes  to  his 
being  forsaken  of  God,  even  as  did  the  enemies  of  our 
blessed  Saviour,  when  He  was  suspended  on  the  cross. 
But  David,  notwithstanding,  kept  by  his  confidence,  and 
effectually  rebuked  his  soul  out  of  its  disquietudes. 

October,  1845. 
Psalm  xliii. — This,  too,  is  an  illustrious  psalm,  of  a 
piece  with  the  preceding,  and  apparently  -written  on  the 
same  occasion,  when  a  gleam  of  light  from  the  sanctuary 
alleviated  the  surrounding  darkness,  and  bore  him  uj) 
amid  all  his  earthly  dangers,  and  desertions,  and  discom- 
forts.    He  was  at  this  time  at  a  distance  from  his  wonted 


PSALM  xLiv.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  45 

place  of  meeting  witli  God  in  tlie  solemn  assembly,  and 
like  to  be  borne  down  by  tbe  strength  of  bis  cruel  and 
perfidious  enemies.  An  ungodly  nation,  even  bis  o^Yn 
infidel  and  rebellious  people,  were  against  bim ;  but  as 
usual  bis  refuge  is  in  God.  He  prays  for  tbe  ligbt  and 
trutli  wliicb  we  too  sboidd  pray  for  to  irradiate  our  o^^-n 
souls.  But  tbere  is  also  a  more  external  tbing  tban  tbis 
tbat  be  prays  for — even  tbat  be  may  be  led  back  again 
to  Mount  Zion  and  its  tabernacles,  from  wbicb  be  was 
now  driA^en  fortb.  Tben  would  be  go  back  to  tbe  altar 
and  tbe  services  wbicb  be  loved.  He  cbides  bis  soul  out 
of  its  despondencies,  and  cbeers  it  on  to  confidence  in 
God A  most  precious  psalm. 

Psalm  xliv.  1-14. — Tbis  psalm  is  conceived  to  bave 
been  written  at  tbe  time  of  tbe  Babylonian  Captivity, 
tbougli  tbe  complaint,  "  Tbou  goest  not  fortb  witb  our 
armies,''  would  seem  to  indicate  a  yet  independent  nation, 
tbougb  in  adverse  circumstances.  Tbe  title  implies,  also, 
tbat  tbe  old  divisions  of  tbe  public  religious  ser^^ice  of  tbe 
Hebrews  were  still  kept  up.  At  all  events  we  must  refer 
tbis  composition  to  anotber  psalmist  tban  David.  It  be- 
gins witb  tbe  contrast  between  tbeir  foimer  triumpbs  and 
tbeir  present  distress.  Tbe  proudest  acbievements,  bow- 
ever,  in  tbe  bistory  of  tbeir  nation  are  bere  piously  re- 
ferred unto  God,  and  He  is  still  professed  to  be  all  tbeir 
confidence  and  bope.  But  notwithstanding  tbis,  tbey 
were  still  kept  in  a  state  of  degradation  and  distress,  sub- 
ject  to    ci-uel   enemies,    and   in   captivity   far   scattered 

among  tbe  beatben Verse  12  is  well   illustrated  by 

Isaiab  lii.  5,  and  Ezekiel  xxxvi.  20.  Israel  bad  been  given 
up  by  God  to  tbe  beatben,  wbicb,  so  far  from  redounding 


46  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READLNGS.  psalm  xlv. 

to  His  glorj  among  tlie  nations,  caused  His  religion  to  be 
derided,  and  His  name  to  be  blasphemed  bj  tliem. 

15-26. — The  pronoun  alternates  between  singular  and 
plural,  as  it  seems  to  have  been  a  joint  utterance  at  a 
public  service,  botli  by  each  for  himself  and  bj  all  collec- 
tively   Their  Babylonish  oppressors  were  blasphemers 

also ;  and  might  well  be  termed  avengers  as  well  as  enemies 
— they  being  God's  instiiiments  for  the  punishment  of  His 
rebellious  people.  But  this  expostulation  seems  now  to 
have  come  from  a  repenting  people  in  the  act  of  their 
turning  to  God,  and  imploring  His  acceptance  and  favour. 
They  might  not  be  dealing  falsely  now,  though  they  did  be- 
fore ;  but  the  season  of  suffering  is  often  prolonged  beyond 
the  point  of  conversion  from  sin  to  righteousness.  And 
so  they  were  still  kept  for  a  time  in  the  place  of  dragons — 
of  men  fierce  as  dragons  towards  them.  They  were  now 
withstanding  idolatiy,  and  not  taking  part  with  their  per- 
secutors in  the  worship  of  their  strange  gods ....  I  can 
scarcely  view  the  Babylonish  captives  as  types  of  the  per- 
secuted Christians;  so  that  the  quotation  of  verse  22  by 
Paul,  in  Rom.  viii.  36,  ushered  in  by  the  words,  "  It  is 
written,''  seems  to  be  an  instance  of  a  mere  adoption  of 
Scriptural  language  in  the  description  of  a  present  case. 
This,  perhaps,  would  clear  \i])  other  instances  of  the  Ncav 

Testament  references  to  the  Old The  captives  conclude 

this  ode  by  a  pleading  appeal  and  prayer  to  God. 

Psalm  xlv. — This  is  obviously  a  prophetic  psalm,  full 
of  Christ — the  testimony  of  whom  is  the  spirit  and  life  of 
prophecy.     By  its  title  it  is  denominated  an  instiTictive 

Song  of  Loves Shoshannim  signifies  "  lilies/'  though  it 

may  oe  the  name  of  an  instmment,  and  perhaps  a-  six- 


PSALM  xLvi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  47 

stringed  one.  Be  tliat  as  it  may,  in  substance  and  savour 
it  is  a  veiy  lofty  composition,  and  bears  a  strong  analogy 
to  the  Song  of  Solomon,  whicb  is  confirmatory  of  tliat 

part  of  Scripture  as  sacred  and  inspired The  "  pen  of 

a  ready  'wi'iter,'''  is  a  memorable  Scripture  expression 

It  soon  appears  tbat  one  greater  than  Solomon  is  bere — 
one  higher  than  any  of  the  children  of  men.  There  is 
that  combination  of  meekness  and  majesty  which  is  only 
realized  in  Him  who,  in  the  Book  of  Revelation,  is  called 
the  Word  of  God,  who  made  war  upon  His  enemies  and 
overcame  them.     See  Heb.  i.  8,  9,  where  we  are  told  that 

verses  6  and  7  were  said  unto  the  Son The  remainder 

of  this  psalm  applies  as  literally  to  Solomon  as  do  the  Can- 
ticles ;  yet  when  so  obviously  capable  of  a  spiritual  applica- 
tion here,  why  not  also  there  ? 

Psalm  xlvi. — Alamoth  may  be  an  instrument  of  music 
or  tune.  It  signifies  "two  secrets,''  and  therefore  may 
characterize  the  subject  as  being  of  Grod's  secret  counsels 
respecting  the  Church.     However  this  may  be,  the  psalm 

itself  is  a  very  noble  composition There  are  various 

theories  of  the  occasion  on  which  it  was  wi^itten.  Some 
think  it  was  when  Jehoshaphat  overthrew  his  enemies,  as 
recorded  in  2  Chron.  xx.  See  in  particular  verses  13,  17, 
28,  29,  30,  of  that  chapter;  verse  10  of  the  psalm  is  in 
good  keeping  with  verse  1 7  of  the  record  ;  and  it  seems 
quite  obvious  that  there  was  a  public  celebration  —  Wliat 
rich  materials  both  for  prayer  and  for  such  reflections  as 
seiTe  to  animate  and  support  the  pious  spirit ! — My  God,  be 
Thou  a  present — a  veiy  present  help  to  me  in  every  time  of 
trouble.  Out  of  the  river  of  Thy  pleasures  may  I  be  made 
glad  —  Jordan  and  its  streams  are  identified,  and  some  of 


48  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xlti;. 

its  tributaries  passed  by  Jerusalem. — May  Thy  living  water 
refresh  and  rejoice  my  soul.  And  0,  amid  the  ills  and 
disappointments  of  life,  may  I  be  still,  and  know  that 
Thou  art  God. 

Psalm  xlvii. — Some  would  render  "  for,''  in  the  titles 
of  the  Psalms,  into  "  by'' — so  that  this  psalm  would  seem 
to  have  been  composed  by  the  sons  of  Korah.  When  the 
musicians  are  adverted  to  in  these  titles,  whether  as 
authors  or  performers,  the  presumption  is  that  the  psalms 
were  composed  for  a  public  service.  The  present  is  well 
adapted  for  such  an  occasion.  All  the  people  are  called 
upon,  and  in  verse  6,  all  the  people  appear  to  join  in  a 
grand  clioiTis  of  praise.  It  is  obviously  an  ode  of  triumph 
sung  in  the  midst  of  a  great  convocation,  headed  by  the 
princes  and  chief  men  of  Israel.  The  multitude  are  called 
upon  to  signify  their  grateful  exultation  unto  God — of 
whom  a  magnificent  description  is  set  forth  by  the  inspired 
bard.  He  is  God  on  high,  a  terror  to  the  enemies  of  Israel, 
and  of  power  over  the  whole  earth,  who  should  subdue 
the  nations,  and  place  them  under  the  feet  of  His  own  be- 
loved people — the  people  whom  He  selected  for  Himself, 

and  to  whom  He  gave  the  inheritance  of  the  heathen 

The  "  excellency  of  Jacob  "  may  be  that  very  inheritance 
by  which  He  signalized  them,  and  in  which  they  gloried. 
...  It  is  a  striking  combination,  that  of ''  praise  with  under- 
standing."— Renew  me  in  knowledge,  0  God  ;  teach  me  to 

praise  with  understanding The  occasion  of  this  psalm 

is  thought  to  be  the  bringing  up  of  the  Ark  from  Obed- 
edom.  (1  Chron.  xv.) — Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  stand  in  awe 
of  Thy  power  and  Thy  holiness;  for  such  is  the  character 
of  Thy  throne,  and  Thine  is  the  strength  of  all  armies. 


P5ALM  xLix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  49 

Psalm  xlviil — This  psalm  is  supposed  by  Dr.  Mason 
Good  to  have  been  composed  after  a  victoiy,  recorded  by 
Josephus,  over  a  formidable  combination  brought  to  bear 
upon  the  Israelites  from  all  quarters — both  by  sea  and 
land-  It  may  have  been  -^Titten  by  the  sons  of  Korah, 
as  a  song  of  triumph,  in  which  the  strength  and  beauty 
of  Jerusalem  are  celebrated,  and  God  acknowledged  as 
her  refuge  —  The  allusions  to  Zion  in  any  psalm  may 
be  regarded  as  evidences  that  it  was  composed  subse- 
quently to  Jerusalem  having  become  the  capital  of  the 
nation  —  The  dispersion  of  confederated  kings,  and  also 
of  a  fleet  by  the  tempest  Euroclydon,  may  be  assuredly 

gathered  from  the  stanzas  of  this  illustrious  ode The 

clause — "  As  we  have  heard,  so  have  we  seen,''  admits  of 
a  very  precious  application  to  the  experimental  evidence 
of  Christianity — "  As  we  have  heard,  so  have  we  found." 
The  Word  of  God,  or  the  preaching  of  it,  tallies  with  our 

own  experience The   defence   and   deliveiy   of  their 

nation  had  been  made  the  subject  of  grateful  commemo- 
ration in  the  midst  of  their  public  services.  Does  the 
temple  in  verse  9,  not  indicate  a  later  period  for  this 
psalm?  At  all  events,  it  seems  the  celebration  of  a  great 
national  deliverance,  the  fame  of  which  had  gone  abroad 
to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  and  which  led  the  people  to 
exult  in  the  fortifications  of  their  city — ascribing,  at  the 
same  time,  all  their  safety  and  triumphs  to  the  God  of 
armies. 

Psalm  xlix.  1-9. — This  psalm,  too,  may  have  been  com- 
posed not  only  for,  but  by  the  sons  of  Korah A  parable 

is  properly  a  figurative  representation,  conveying  a  moral ; 
and  there  are  similitudes  in  this  psalm  for  gi\'ing  it  this 

vol.  iil  0* 


50  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xlix. 

designation.  But  a  parable  is  sometimes  so  called,  though 
the  lesson  be  not  couched  in  figures.  This  tallies  with 
the  progress  which  is  frequent  with  words,  from  their 
primaiy  to  a  more  extended  meaning.  The  comj)oser  of 
the  psalm  says,  "  I  will  incline  mine  ear  \'  and  so  had 
prophets  often  to  do  with  the  products  of  their  o^y\\  in- 
spiration. (1  Pet.  i.  10-12.)  .. ."  The  iniquity  of  my  heels" 
may  be  such  sins  as  those  to  which  I  have  been  tempted 
by  him  who,  though  he  cannot  biTiise  my  head,  yet  biTiiseth 
my  heels.  I  will  wash  them  out  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb,  who  died  a  ransom  for  the  sins  of  His  followers : 
not  so  those  who  trust  in  wealth,  which  can  ransom  the 
souls  of  none,  so  as  that  they  should  live  as  Christ,  who 
saw  not  corruj^tion,  and  His  redeemed,  who,  because  He 
lives,  shall  live  also.  Wliereas  the  offered  redemption  by 
cori-uptible  things,  as  silver  and  gold,  is  utterly  worthless, 
and  will  not  achieve  a  thing  so  costly  as  the  redemption 
of  any  soul,  which,  if  it  once  pass  into  eternity  with  its 
sins  unexpiated,  must  thenceforth  give  up  all  hope  of  a 
future  salvation,  as  now  impossible. 

10-20. — Yet  when,  or  though,  he  seeth  that  all  die,  the 
godly  and  the  wicked — still  there  is  the  cleaving  imagi- 
nation of  an  eternity  on  this  side  of  death.  He  builds  as 
securely  on  the  world  as  if  the  world  were  to  last  for  ever. 
Such  is  the  false  maxim  and  fancy  of  the  worldling,  not 
rooted  out  when  he  comes  to  die  himself;  for  the  worldly 
generation  that  succeed  him  admire  his  wisdom,  honour 
him  for  the  prosperity  to  which  he  has  risen,  praise  him  for 
the  success  of  his  own  selfishness,  even  as  he  congratulated 
his  own  wisdom  and  good  fortune  whilst  he  was  alive. 
Nevertheless,  man  in  high  earthly  honour  abideth  not  if 
he  understandeth  not,  (verses  12  and  20,)  wanting  the 


PSALM  L.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  51 

wisdom  of  him  who  rightly  considereth  the  number  of  his 
days,  (Psalm  xc.  12,)  and  so  will  be  like  the  beasts  that 
perish.  He  brought  nothing  into  the  world,  and  certain 
it  is  that  he  can  take  nothing  out.  (1  Tim.  vi.  7.) — Let 
us  not,  therefore,  stand  in  awe  of  man,  or  carry  our  respect 
.    to  him  so  far  as  to  argue  our  preference,  too,  of  the  earthly 

^^  to  the  spiritual  and  eternal The  Psalmist's  expression 

of  his  faith  in  being  received  by  God,  and  redeemed  by 
Him,  not  from  captivity  or  from  the  hand  of  enemies,  but 
from  the  grave,  seems  a  decisive  recognition  of  immor- 
tality in  the  Old  Testament. 

Psalm  l.  1-15. — This  is  a  remarkable  psalm,  and  the 
subject  of  it  seems  to  lie  within  the  domain  of  unfulfilled 
prophecy.  There  has  been  no  appearance  yet  from  Mount 
Zion  at  all  corresponding  with  that  made  from  Mount 
Sinai.  And  I  am  far  more  inclined  to  the  literal  inter- 
pretation of  this  psalm,  than  to  that  which  would  restrict 
it  to  the  mere  preaching  of  the  Gospel  in  the  days  of  the 
Apostles.  It  looks  far  more  like  the  descent  of  the  Son 
of  Man  on  the  Mount  of  Olives,  with  all  the  accompani- 
ments of  a  Jewish  conversion,  and  a  first  resurrection,  and 
a  destruction  of  the  assembled  hosts  of  Antichrist.  The 
saints  here  summoned  are  those  within  the  pale  of  the 
everlasting  covenant  ratified  by  the  blood  of  the  sacrifice 
of  Christ.  The  address  here  given  is  like  that  from  the 
Son  of  God,  now  manifested  to  the  Jews,  who  had  returned, 
though  yet  unconverted,  to  the  Holy  Land ;  but  who,  now 
hearing  the  words  as  well  as  seeing  the  person  of  Him 
whom  they  had  pierced,  are  bom  in  a  day  by  the  impres- 
sive remonstrance  and  overpowering  spectacle.  In  say- 
ing that  He  would  not  reckon,  with  them  on  iheir  daily 


52  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  l. 

sacrifices  and  continual  burnt-offerings,  but  tbat  His  call 
upon  them  now  was  for  their  gratitude  and  their  obedience, 
and  their  pravers,  He  as  good  as  presses  on  them  the  change 
of  their  Old  for  the  New  Dispensation  ;  and  they  hence- 
forth, and  as  the  fruit  of  their  national  conversion,  now 
render  glory  to  Him  whom,  with  wicked  hands,  their  an- 
cestors had  crucified  and  slain. 

16-23. — The 'prophecY,  if  prophecy  it  should  be  called, 
assumes  now  more  of  the  insti-uctive  than  of  the  predic- 
tive character.  It  may  be  applied  to  the  destruction  of 
Christ's  enemies  in  the  day  of  Armageddon,  but  seems 
far  more  directly  applicable  to  those  hypocrites  Avhose 
service  lay  exclusively  in  the  rites  and  observances  of  the 
ceremonial  law.  The  lesson  given  here  is  often  repeated 
by  the  prophets,  when  they  urge  that  obedience  is  better 
than  the  fat  of  lambs.  Wliat  have  such  Pharisaical 
teachers  to  do  with  the  lessons  of  righteousness  ?  or  is  it 
for  them  to  declare  the  will  and  the  ways  of  God  ?  Let 
me  take  this  to  myself;  and  if  it  be  a  grievous  delin- 
quency that  one  should  be  a  hearer  and  not  a  doer — 
how  much  more  grievous  that  one  should  be  a  teacher 
and  not  a  doer  ! — Save  me,  0  God,  from  being  a  partaker 
in  others'  sins,  and  more  especially  in  that  sin  which 
most  easily  besets  me.  Save  me  from  the  delusion  of 
thinking  Thee  to  be  like  unto  myself;  and  give  me  to 
know  how  enormous  in  Thy  estimation  is  the  mere  forget- 
fulness  of  God,  and  how  awful  are  Thy  dealings  with  it. 
What  a  precious  connexion  is  here  stated  between  the 
ordering  aright  of  our  conversation,  and  the  insight  that 

we  shall  obtain  of  the  salvation  of  God There  are 

weighty  and  most  important  lessons  to  be  gathered  from 
the  closing  verses  of  this  psalm. 


PSALM  Lii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  53 


Psalm  li. — This  is  tlie  most  deeply  affecting  of  all  the 
psalms,  and  I  am  sure  the  one  most  applicable  to  me.  It 
seems  to  have  been  the  effusion  of  a  soul  smarting  under 
the  sense  of  a  recent  and  great  transgression. — My  God, 
whether  recent  or  not,  give  me  to  feel  the  enormity  of  my 
various  and  manifold  offences,  and  remember  not  against 

me  the  sins  of  my  youth Wliat  a  mine  of  rich  matter 

and  expression  for  prayer ! — Wash,  cleanse  me,  0  Lord, 
and  let  my  sin  and  my  sinfulness  be  ever  before  me.  Let 
me  feel  it  chiefly  as  sin  against  Thee,  that  my  sorrow  may 
be  of  the  godly  sort.  Give  me  to  feel  the  virulence  of 
my  native  corniption — purple  me  from  it  thoroughly,  and 
put  truth  into  my  inward  parts,  that  mine  may  be  a  real 
turning  from  sin  unto  the  Saviour.  Create  me  anew,  0 
God.  Withdraw  not  Thy  Spirit.  Cause  me  to  rejoice  in 
a  present  salvation.  Deliver  me,  0  God,  from  the  blood- 
guiltiness  of  having  offended  any  of  Thy  little  ones^  and 
so  open  my  lips,  that  I  may  speak  of  the  wondrous  things 
Thou  hast  done  for  my  soul !  May  I  offer  up  spiritual 
sacrifices:  and  0,  let  not  any  delinquencies  of  mine  bring 
a  scandal  upon  the  Church ;  but  do  Thou  so  purify  and 
build  her  up,  that  even  her  external  services,  freed  from 
all  taint  of  cormption  or  hypocrisy,  may  be  well-pleasing 
in  Thy  sight. 

Psalm  lil — David  was  in  circumstances  of  great  peril 
when  he  indited  this  psalm,  directed  against  one  of  his 
deadliest  enemies — Doeg  the  Edomite — at  that  time  a 
mighty  man,  for  in  great  favour  at  court.  (1  Sam.  xxi.  7 ; 
xxii.  9.)  He  was  a  man  of  deep  craft,  and  withal  a  most 
ferocious  man  of  blood.  (1  Sam.  xxii.  18,  19.)  His  words 
were  indeed  devouring  words ;  yet  David,  in  the  face  of 


54  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  liii. 

all  the  danger  wliicli  lie  incurred  from  this  formidable 
adversary,  encourages  himself  in  that  God  whose  good- 
ness endureth  continually.  And  so  he  prophesies  destruc- 
tion to  the  Edomite,  and  the  consequent  triumph  and 
exultation  of  the  righteous :  they  shall  "  see/'  and  it  is 
added  "fear."     The  judgments  of  God  should  make  ua 

fear,  lest  we  bring  them  upon  ourselves It  is  a  pregnant 

expression — that  of  "making  God  our  strength.'' — Let  us 
tiiist  not  in  deceitful  riches,  but  in  the  living  God,  who 
giveth  us  all  things  richly  to  enjoy.  Let  us  but  trust  in 
Him,  and  then  shall  we  flourish  in  His  favour,  and  within 
the  precincts  of  His  blessed  family.  Let  us  wait  on  His 
name — even  though  our  powers  of  conceiving  him  go 
little  beyond  the  name,  still  even  in  that  name  let  us 
trust.  It  is  a  good  napie,  and  it  is  good  to  wait  on  it. 
It  is  a  good  thing  for  one  to  hope,  and  quietly  to  wait  for 
the  salvation  of  God, 

Psalm  liii. — This  is  nearly  identical  with  Psalm  xiv. 
"We  are  not  to  wonder  that  the  ver)'  peculiar  devotedness 
of  the  monarch  to  God  and  to  His  service,  should  call 
forth  a  reaction  of  natural  enmity  among  the  grandees  of 
his  court,  and  give  rise  to  an  infidel  party.  The  captivity 
here  spoken  of  may  be  the  exile  from  Jerusalem  which 
David  underwent  by  the  rebellion  of  Absalom.  He  charges 
the  oppressors  of  the  people  with  their  tp^anny,  but 
ascribes  to  them  a  fear  of  vengeance,  the  fruit  not  of 
sensible  appearances — for  aU  might  look  secure  and 
promising  to  the  eye  of  flesh — but  the  suggestion  of  con- 
sciences not  at  ease ;  and  also  of  memory  recalling  what 
God  hath  formerly  done  against  the  enemies  of  Zion. 
. . .  The  last  clause  of  verse  5  seems  to  speak  a  different 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


meaning  from  the  analogous  clause  of  xiv.  6.  The  de- 
spising here  is  on  the  part  of  God  Himself;  and  Zion,  or 
God's  Israel,  or  His  true  Church  in  the  nation,  can  put 
the  object  of  this  contempt  to  shame,  because  despised 
and  abandoned  by  God. 

Psalm  liv. — This  psalm,  we  have  reason  to  believe,  was 
written  in  circumstances  of  danger,  from  the  treacherous 
hostility  of  the  Zi];)hites.  (1  Sam.  xxiii.,  &c.)  He  has 
recourse,  as  usual,  to  prayer,  which  he  lifts  up  with  un- 
shaken confidence,  notwithstanding  the  adverse  appear- 
ances by  which  he  was  surrounded.  In  characterizing 
his  enemies  he  speaks  powerfully  home  to  the  consciences 
of  those  who  are  awakening  to  a  sense  of  their  enmity 
against  God.  It  is  a  strikingly  descriptive  trait  of  such — 
that  "they  do  not  set  God  before  them" — so  descriptive 
that  it  would  form  a  fit  text  from  which  to  convince  men 
of  their  native  ungodliness.  God  helped  David  by  the 
instrumentality  of  friends — and  being  with  them  who 
upheld  his  soul.  It  was  God  working  in  and  with  Jona- 
than when  he  strengthened  his  hand  in  God.  (1  Sam. 
xxiii.  16.)  David  therefore  did  not  let  go  his  triumphant 
anticipation  of  better  days,  when  he  should  be  restored 
to  his  country,  and  to  the  full  enjoyment  of  its  ritual  and 
religious  services.  The  conclusion  of  this  psalm  seems  to 
suit  the  conclusion  of  1  Sam.  xxiii.,  where  we  read  that 
David  obtained  a  temporary  deliverance,  by  the  with- 
drawment  of  Saul  and  his  forces  from  their  pursuit  after 
him. 

Psalm  lv.  1-11. — Tliis  psalm,  A^Titten  for  instruction, 
as  its  title  imports,  is  addressed  to  the  chief  performer  on 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


stringed  instilments.  The  occasion  of  it  is  understood 
to  have  been  the  flight  of  David  from  Absalom  ;  and  it  is 
certainly  the  eftusion  of  one  who  was  sore  beleaguered  by 
enemies  who  hated  and  accused  him.  The  author  of  it 
pours  forth  both  the  agonies  and  teiTors  of  one  who  had 
l3een  grievously  injured,  and  even  looks  forvN^ard  to  a 
violent  death  at  the  hand  of  his  cruel  adversaries.  His 
aspiration  for  a  tranquil  and  safe  retreat,  at  a  distance 
from  all  the  trouble  by  which  he  was  beset  on  every  side, 
are  very  eloquently  given — even  that  he  might  "  flee 
away  like  a  dove  "  to  the  lodge  of  a  wayfaring  man  in 
the  wilderness,  where  he  might  be  at  rest  from  the  storms 
and  agitations  of  an  evil  world.  His  prayer  that  "  God 
would  divide  their  tongues/'  was  signally  fulfilled  in  the 
overthrow  of  the  counsel  of  Ahithophel,  to  which  instru- 
nentally  David  owed  his  preserv^ation.  He  knew  that 
'here  were  the  elements  of  turbulence  and  dissension  in 
rhe  city,  and  that  strong  measures  were  required  to  keep 
doA^m  the  outbreaks  of  a  lawless  and  licentious  popula- 
tion ;  and  on  this,  too,  he  founds  a  hope  that  the  rebellion 
will  not  keep  together.  He  gives  a  vivid  picture  of  the 
wickedness  and  disorder  that  reigned  in  Jerusalem. 

12-23. — The  general  understanding  is  that  Ahithophel 
is  here  singled  out  for  the  animadversions  of  the  Psalmist 
— at  one  time  the  friend,  and  pleasant  counsellor,  and 
fellow-worshipper  of  David.  Had  he  been  an  open  enemy 
to  the  king  he  could  have  shunned  and  avoided  him,  so 
as  to  have  secured  himself  against  his  machinations.  The 
prayer  of  David  against  his  enemies  is  surely  as  legitimate 
as  the  defence  of  himself  against  them,  though  even  unto 
their  death,  or  descent  into  the  grave,  into  Hades,  and  not 
the  hell  of  everlasting  punishment.     Surely  when  turning 


PSALM  LYi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  57 

to  God  ill  prayer,  after  he  had  poured  these  maledictions 
ujDon  his  enemies,  this  inspired  man  did  not  incur  the 
condemnation  which  James  pronounces  on  those  from 
whose  mouth  proceed  at  the  same  time,  blessing  and 
cursing Are  there  not  here  the  indications  of  that  pro- 
gressive morality  which  we  have  before  adverted  to  ?  But 
there  is  much  of  the  pei-manent  and  unchangeable,  too, 
in  these  verses  ;  and  more  especially  in  the  clause — that 
"  because  they  have  no  changes,  therefore  they  fear  not 
God'' — an  admirable  text  for  a  sermon  on  the  security  of 
worldly  men.  And  then  what  a  noble  direction  to  the 
anxious  Christian — "  Cast  thy  burden  upon  the  Lord,  and 
He  shall  sustain  thee/'  Ere  the  psalm  concludes  there 
seems  in  it  a  second  recurrence  to  the  treacherous  Ahi- 
thophcl. 

Psalm  lvl — Dr.  Good  inclines  more  to  the  literal,  and 
Bishoj)  Horsley  to  the  spiritual,  in  their  respective  works 
on  the  Psalms.  The  former  makes  the  occasion  of  this 
psalm  to  be  David's  distress  at  the  court  of  Achish,  as 
recorded  in  1  Sam.  xxix.  The  latter  entitles  it  a  prayer 
of  the  Messiah.  Both  may  be  true.  Certain  it  is  that 
the  conduct  of  Christ's  enemies  in  watching  Him,  and 
lying  at  ambush,  and  A^TCsting  His  words,  are  here  strik- 
ingly pourtrayed.  And  there  is  nothing  to  discredit  this 
interpretation  in  the  earnestness  and  felt  dependence  of 
these  petitions  ;  for  Christ  did  supplicate  the  Father  with 
cries  and  tears.  But  w^hichever  of  these  views  be  taken, 
the  lesson  is  the  same  to  us,  in  that  we  should  turn  con- 
fidingly to  God  when  like  to  be  overborne  by  our  enemies. 
There  seems  an  allusion  to  verses  4  and  11  in  Heb.  xiii.  6. 
. .  The  putting  of  the  Psalmist's  tears  into  His  bottle  is 

c2 


58  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lvii. 

like  a  treasuring  up  of  the  sufferings  and  merits  of  Christ, 
that  they  might  avail  for  the  sins  of  tliose  who  believe. 
Some  of  Horsley's  renderings  might  be  adopted,  though 
there  seems  no  obscurity  which  requires  to  be  cleared  up ... . 
The  word  Jonath-elem-rechokim  has  greatly  exercised  the 
critics.  Horsley's  explanation  of  it  is  descriptive  enough 
of  David's  situation — as  a  dove,  or  one  of  God's  saints,  in 
a  far  country,  exposed  to  the  hatred  and  ridicule  of  the 
heathen. 

Psalm  lvii. — This,  too,  is  termed  by  Horsley,  a  prayer 
of  the  Messiah.  Al-taschith  signifies  "  Destroy  not."  It 
is  a  prayer  that  might  well  be  lifted  up  by  one  who  is 
assailed  with  evils  on  every  side,  hiding  himself  in  God 
until  the  calamities  be  overpast. — What  a  blessed  con- 
junction are  the  mercy  and  truth — both,  by  the  economy  of 
the  Gospel,  on  the  side  of  the  believer  !  David's  enemies 
on  earth  may  be  but  the  typical  representatives  of  those 
hostile  principalities  and  powers  with  whom  Christ  held  a 
mysterious  combat,  and  against  whom  He  implored  suc- 
cour from  on  high ....  The  phrase  "  to  swallow  up,"  might 
be  rendered  into  "  trampled  under  foot,"  or  bruised ;  which 
last  expression  brings  this  psalm  nearer  to  the  likelihood 
of  being  an  utterance  as  from  the  Captain  of  our  Salva- 
tion, whose  heel   Satan   did   bruise At   verse    7  the 

Psalmist  breaks  forth  into  confidence  and  praise,  as  if  his 
supplications  had  now  been  heard,  and  God  had  inter- 
posed for  his  deliverance  and  triumph There  is  a  con- 
cluding and  most  comfortable  allusion  again  to  God's 
mercy  and  truth.  The  celebration  of  God  among  the 
people  and  the  nations,  might  suit  either  the  type  or 
the  antitype, 


PSALM  Lix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  59 

Psalm  lviii. — There  is  a  great  plausibility  in  tlie  sup- 
position tliat  tliis  psalm  was  wTitten  soon  before  the  break- 
ing out  of  the  rebellion  of  Absalom,  who  boasted  that  he 
would  administer  justice  so  righteously  in  the  land.  "  Do 
ye  indeed  speak  righteousness  V  "do  ye  judge  uprightly?" 
It  is  quite  obvious  that  the  time  of  its  composition  must 
have  been  a  time  of  great  wickedness  and  ungodliness  in 
Israel:  they  weighed,  or  concerted,  their  measures  of 
violence   in   the   land ;    they   resisted   the   pleadings  of 

justice,  however  skilfully  or  wisely  they  were  framed 

Verse  5  is  one  of  the  sj)ecial  memorabilia  of  Scripture 

Here  we  have  the  prayers  of  David  against  his  enemies— 
as  la^^^ul,  I  should  think,  as  the  strivings  of  war  against 

them Horsley  says  that  a  greater  than  David  is  here, 

and  calls  this  psalm  a  prediction  of  God's  just  judgment 
against  the  unjust  judges  of  our  Lord  ;  and  certainly  it  is 
not  unsusceptible  of  such  an  explanation The  sudden- 
ness of  the  wicked's  destruction  is  signified  by  an  image 
in  verse  9,  the  latter  part  of  which  has  been  rendered, 
"  In  whirlwind  and  hurricane  He  shall  sweep  them  away." 
Horsley  would  further  translate  "  the  righteous  "  into  "the 
Just  One,"  and  "the  wicked"  into  "the  impious  one;" 
thereby  importing  the  victory  of  Christ  over  Satan. 

Psalm  lix. — Dr.  Mason  Good  holds  the  occasion  of  this 
psalm  to  be  the  history  in  1  Sam.  xix.  9-12.  Horsley  sets 
aside  this  hypothesis,  notwithstanding  its  agreement  with 
the  title,  and  assigns  a  distinct  literal  occasion,  while  he 
holds  it  to  be  a  prayer  and  prediction  of  the  Messiah. 
There  are  verses  which  suit  very  well  with  the  foraier 
supposition — more  particularly  the  description,  applicable 
enough  to  the  pursuers  of  David,  as  given  in  verses  6,  .14, 


60  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lx. 

15.  He  speaks  as  if  he  foresaw  their  failure,  and  his 
own  safety  by  the  return  of  the  morning.  Still,  I  would 
not  call  it  a  stretch  of  imagination  to  apply  it  to  the  Re- 
deemer also,  whose  persecutors  were  the  Jews ;  and  in  the 
sufferings  of  whose  dispersion,  we  have  a  most  adequate 
fulfilment  of  the  prayers  and  prophecies  of  this  psalm — 
sufferings  expressly  entailed  on  them  for  having  crucified 
the  Lord  of  Glory.  Our  Saviour  could  emphatically  say 
of  the  endurance  which  was  laid  upon  Him,  that  it  was 

not   for  His  transgression,  and  not  for  His  sin The 

seventh  verse  seems  peculiarly  applicable  to  the  conduct 
of  the  multitude  around  Him  when  suspended  on  the 
cross.  And  truly  the  children  of  Israel  were  scattered 
by  the  power  of  Him  to  whom  He  committed  His  cause. 

Psalm  lx. — Whatever  may  be  made  of  it,  Shushan- 
eduth,  if  literally  translated,  is  "  the  lily  of  the  testimony." 
. . .  The  occasion  of  this  psalm  seems  to  have  been  some 
menacing  combination  of  enemies  on  all  sides,   against 

whom  David  lifts  up  the  cry  of  distress  to  God "To 

drink  the  wine  of  astonishment,"  is  a  singularly  expres- 
sive and  memorable  saying The  psalm  begins  with 

despondency  and  terror,  and  ends  in  triumph.  Not  that 
we  think  it  was  composed  at  different  times,  but  that  the 
light  of  prophecy  was  given  in  answer  to  prayer ;  and  so 
David,  previous  to  their  fulfilment,  could  look  forward  to 
such  victories  and  restorations  of  state  as  are  recorded  in 
2  Sam.  viii.,  1  Chron.  xviii.  After  describing  the  miseries 
of  their  condition,  he,  in  verse  4,  recollects  God's  favour  to 
:he  righteous ;  and  the  glorious  anticipations  of  verses  6-8, 

ieem  a  reply  to  the  supplication  of  verse  5 "  Philistia, 

triumph  thou  because  of  me/'  has  been  rendered,  "  Over 


PSALM  Lxii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  61 

Philistia  is  my  sliout  of  triumpli.". . .  David's  renunciation 
of  all  earthly  confidence,  and  his  confidence  in  God,  form 
a  most  natural  and  becoming  conclusion  to  this  war-song-. 
. . .  Aram-zobah  in  the  title,  is  conceived  to  be  the  Zobah 
of  Scripture  history ;  though  it  is  difficult  to  make  out  a 
coincidence  with  the  direct  narrative. 

Psalm  lxi. — This  is  supposed  by  Dr.  Mason  Good  to 
have  been  written  after  the  defeat  and  death  of  Absalom  ; 
so  that,  while  there  is  the  language  of  deliverance,  there 
is  also  that  of  distress,  or  of  a  spirit  overwhelmed,  as 
David's  was  upon  that  occasion.  The  Psalmist  cries  from 
the  end  of  the  earth,  or,  as  Good  would  have  it,  "  from 
the  outskirts  of  the  land" — that  is,  from  beyond  Jordan, 
where  David  at  that  time  was  — "  Lead  me  to  the  Rock 
that  is  higher  than  I,"  may  at  all  times  be  adopted  as  our 
prayer.  It  was  most  natural  for  David  to  felicitate  him- 
self on  the  prospect  of  abiding  in  that  tabernacle,  which 
was  his  delight,  and  from  which  he  had  been  exiled.  The 
restoration  of  his  heritage,  and  prayer  for  the  prolonga- 
tion of  the  king's  relief,  are  both  in  keeping  with  the  hy- 
pothesis   The  blessed  conjunction  of  mercy  and  truth, 

which  occurs  so  frequently  in  these  inspired  songs,  occurs 
here  again,  and  always  with  fresh  delight  to  my  heart. — 
May  I  know  what  it  is,  0  Lord,   daily  to  perform  my 

vows Horsley  says  that  the  king  here  is  evidently  the 

Mossian. 

Psalm  lxii. — This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have  been  on 
the  historical  occasion  of  1  Sam.  xxiii.  14.  But  it  is  of  most 
precious  and  permanent  application  in  all  ages  —  To  wait 
on  God  and   not  be  greatly  moved  by  the  adversities 


G2  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxiti. 

of  the  "^orld,  is  at  all  times  a  liigli  spiritual  achievement. 
...Horsley  translates  the  "tottering"  into  a  "shaken" 

fence The  charge  which  the  Psalmist  lays  upon  his 

soul,  when  beset  bj  the  machinations  of  the  wicked,  is  a 
truly  impressive  one.  It  is  truly  instiiictive  to  observ^e 
how  he  stays  himself  upon  God — all  his  expectation  being 
from  Him — all  his  salvation  and  glory  being  in  Him. — 
Let  me  follow  the  earnest  call  here  given  to  confidence 
in  Grod,  and  to  the  pouring  forth  all  our  inmost  wishes 
and  thoughts  before  Him,  Let  me  not  trust  in  the  arm 
of  flesh.  At  one  time  I  have  built  too  much  on  the  sim- 
j^licity  of  the  humbler  classes,  and  too  much  on  the  honour 
and  patriotism  of  the  higher.  I  have  been  disappointed 
in  both ;  high  or  low — they  are  men,  and  as  such  I  am 
bidden  to  beware  of  them.  Let  me  set  not  my  heart 
upon  riches,  but  on  Him  who  is  able  to  give  us  all 
things.  It  is  of  God's  mercy,  and  not  of  His  justice, 
that  our  works    are   admitted  to  any  consideration,   or 

at  all  rewarded  by  Him Horsley,  as  usual,  states  the 

I)aii:ies  in  this  psalm  to  be  the  Messiah  and  His  enemies. 
And  there  is  much  to  countenance  this  idea. — He  was 
persecuted  by  the  rulers,  He  was  forsaken  by  the  mul- 
titude. 

Psalm  lxiii. — A  psalm  said  to  be  written  by  David  in 
the  wilderness  of  Judah,  on  his  return  from  the  defeat  of 
Absalom,  and  hastening  back  to  JeiTisalem,  where  he 
might  worship  as  aforetime  in  the  sanctuary.  But  well  is 
it  suited  to  every  pilgrim  upon  earth,  whose  desires  are 
pointing  heavenward ;  and  so  will  this  composition  be 
dear  to  the  feelings  of  every  aspirant  after  God  and  good- 
ness, even  to  the  end  of  the  world. — Enable  me,  0  Lord,  to 


PSALM  Lxiv.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  63 

say  in  faitli,  Tliou  art  my  God.  Admit  me  to  behold  the 
glories  of  Thy  character;  and  0  that  the  spiritual  appe- 
tite were  given  to  me  of  thirsting  after  God.  Let  me  ever 
esteem  Thy  favour  as  better  than  life ;  and  may  my  soul 
be  satisfied  with  good  things.  Give  me  in  my  bed  at 
night  to  delight  myself  with  God :  and  0  that  I  knew 
what  it  was  to  have  my  soul  following"  hard  after  Thee. 
Give  me,  0  Lord,  the  power  and  the  habit  of  godly  medi- 
tation :  and  amid  the  annoyances  of  an  outer  world,  be 

Thou  the  habitation  to  which  I  may  resort  continually 

The  last  verse  is  quite  in  keeping  with  the  supposed  occa- 
sion of  this  psalm. 

Psalm  lxiv. — Dr.  Mason  Good  fixes  on  1  Sam.  xix.  1,  2, 
as  the  historical  occasion  of  this  psalm,  which  ob\dously  is 
a  prayer  for  deliverance  from  the  hand  of  enemies.  And 
it  was  a  time,  too,  of  secret  counsel  and  laying  of  snares 
against  David,  as  well  as  insurrection.  There  were  both 
treachery  and  malice  at  work  and  plotting  for  his  destruc- 
tion :  and  thus  doing,  the  adversaries  of  David  may  be 
said  to  have  been  shooting  at  the  perfect.  They  watched 
him  for  the  purpose  of  entrapping  or  Avaylaying — wresting 
what  he  may  have  spoken,  and  misintei'preting  all  that 
concerned  him.  And  they  prosecuted  their  object  with 
diligence  and  deep  cunning ;  yet  could  David,  amid  all 
his  dangers,  take  comfort  in  the  sense  of  his  o"\\ai  integrity, 

and  cast  himself  upon   God The  psalm  accords,  too, 

with  Horsley's  view,  who  regards  it  as  a  prayer  of  the 
Messiah — He  being  subject  to  the  identical  treatment 
that  we  have  now  been  describing.  And  what  is  here 
predicted  against  His  enemies,  signally  befell  the  Jews ; 
while  more  emphatically  than  any  of  the  sons  of  men, 


G4  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxv. 

could  the  Saviour  make  His  boast  in  God,  and  plead  a 
perfect  righteousness  before  Him. 

Psalm  lxv. — Tliis  exquisitely  beautiful  psalm  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  prepared  for  one  of  the  Jewish  fes- 
tivals. Horslej,  in  verse  3,  renders  it,  "  The  account  of 
iniquities  is  too  great  for  me"  which  harmonizes  better 
with  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  than  ''  iniquities  prevail 
against  me.''  However  great  the  account  of  our  iniqui- 
ties, they  can  be  purged  away  in  the  guilt  of  them  by 
the  Atonement.  But  the  promise  is,  that  we  shall  be  de- 
livered from  the  power  of  them  ;  so,  though  sin  dwells  in 
these  vile  bodies,  it  shall  not  have  the  dominion  over  us. 
— Grive  me,  0  God,  thus  to  experience,  and  also  to  taste 
the  high  and  positive  enjo}Tiient  of  a  direct  spiritual  in- 
tercourse with  Thyself:  and  when  Thy  judgTaents  are 
abroad  in  the  world,  may  I  learn  righteousness.  Thou 
hast  all  power  in  heaven  and  earth,  reigning  supreme  over 
the  mental  as  over  the  material  world.  Do  thou  still  the 
tumults  within  me  of  the  old  man,  and  give  me  both  the 
life  and  the  peace  of  those  who  are  spiritually-minded. 
The  earth  to  its  remotest  bounds  stands  in  awe  of  the 
Divine  manifestations,  when,  in  tempest  or  in  thunder, 
He  makes  known  His  power.  But  He  has  other  exhibi- 
tions in  nature,  where,  as  in  a  mirror,  we  can  discern  the 
gentler  characteristics  of  the  Deity ;  nor  in  the  whole 
range  of  poetry  do  we  know  any  pastoral  description  so 
full  of  loveliness,  so  lighted  up  with  all  that  is  glad  and 
graceful  in  the  choicest  panorama  on  the  face  of  the  world. 
Let  me  single  out  the  paths  which  drop  fatness,  and  the 
little  hills  which  rejoice  on  every  side.  Altogether  it  is 
about  the  noblest  composition  in  the  psalmody  of  Scripture. 


PSALM  Lxvr.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  65 

November,  1845. 

Psalm  lxvl  1-9. — Tliis  psalm  accords  well  with  the 
hj-pothesis  of  its  having  been  written  after  Davicrs  re- 
turn from  the  defeat  of  Absalom,  and  on  his  first  public 
approach  to  the  semce  of  the  ritual,  whether  at  Mount 
Zion  or  in  Gibeon . . . ."  All  the  lands,"  and  "all  the  earth," 
may  signify  either  all  Israel,  or  the  whole  world.  He  in- 
vokes them  to  join  in  his  triumph,  and  to  celebrate,  along 
with  himself,  the  high  praises  of  God.  There  is  an 
appeal  made  to  the  miracles  by  which  their  nation  was 
signalized ;  and  never  surely  had  any  nation  a  prouder 
history.  It  seems  as  if  the  passage  of  Israel  over  the  Red 
Sea  was  here  referred  to;  yet,  on  Horsley's  supposition  of 
this  psalm  being  a  public  thanksgiving  of  the  Messiah,  on 
the  final  deliverance  of  the  Jews,  it  may  refer  to  the  signs 
and  prodigies  wherewith  the  next  dispensation  will  be 
ushered  in.  There  is  word  of  the  destruction  of  the  tongue 
of  the  Egyptian  sea,  of  another  highway  being  prepared 
for  the  people,  like  as  it  was  to  the  passage  under  Moses, 
so  that  verse  7  may  apply  to  this  futurity  also  ;  and  cer- 
tainly there  is  more  of  a  wide  regard  cast  throughout  on 
the  world  and  its  nations,  than  is  altogether  suited  to  the 
circumstances  of  David. 

1 0-20. — David  had  indeed  been  well  proved  and  disci- 
plined by  the  rebellion  of  his  son,  and,  we  have  no  doubt, 
refined  by  it,  even  as  silver  is  by  the  operation  of  the  fur- 
nace, when  like  it  brought  through  fire  and  water.  He 
"v\'as  at  last  brought,  however,  into  a  wealthy  place,  where 
all  the  tribes  of  Israel  vied  with  each  other  in  their  pro- 
testations of  loyalty  and  returning  allegiance.  He  had 
now  the  prospect  of  resuming  those  ritual  and  religious 
serv-ces  which  he  loved,  and  of  paying  the  vows  which  he 


66  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxvii. 

lifted  up  in  the  days  of  liis  adversity. — Give  me,  0  Lord, 
to  have  the  materials  and  the  experience  on  which  I  might 
declare  what  great  things  Thou  hast  done  for  my  soul. 
To  assure  the  fulfilment  of  this  we  are  here  told  of  the 
efficacy  of  believing  prayer ;  hut  let  me  ever  proceed  on 
the  memorable  saying,  that  "  if  I  regard  iniquity  the  Lord 
will  not  hear  me.''  Let  me  henceforth  record  my  o^ati 
sense  of  the  chief  notabilia  of  Scripture  ;  this  just  quoted 
from  verse  1 8  is  one  of  them.  All  is  profitable  ;  but  there 
are  some  of  its  sayings  which  I  feel  disposed  thus  to  single 

out,  and  to  affix  this  note  to  them How  beautiful  the 

counterpart  clauses  are  of  the  last  verse,  *'  He  hath  turned 
not  away  my  prayer,  nor  yet  His  merey  from  me/' 

Psalm  lxvii. — Tliis  is  regard'ed  as  a  song  for  the  feast 
of  tabernacles,  at  the  time  of  the  ingathering,  when  a 
sense  of  gratitude  to  the  bountiful  Provider  of  all  things 
was  mixed  up  with  the  joys  of  a  harvest-home.  In  our 
translation  it  reads  like  a  conjunct  prayer  and  prophecy, 
and  impresses  the  idea  of  a  prosperous  spiritual  harvest — 
the  fruit  of  a  successful  mission,  by  which  the  Gospel  was 
made  known  to  all  nations,  and  that  greatest  of  all  bless- 
ings, here  expressed  by  the  significant  phrase  of  "  saving 
health,"  was  diffused  universally.  Wlien  God's  face  shines 
upon  the  preachers,  it  mightily  conduces  to  the  spread  and 
efficacy  of  their  message.  The  psalm  surely  points  to  a 
time  when  there  shall  be  a  plentiful  ingathering  of  human 
souls,  and  so  a  renovated  moral  world ;  for  one  cannot  see 
the  connexion  between  a  good  crop  in  Judea,  and  such  a 
season  of  general  light  and  religiousness  and  enlargement 
as  is  here  spoken  of  But  yet  the  future  is  convertible 
into  the  past,  so  as  to  warrant  the  translation  that  "  the 


PSALM  Lxviii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  67 

earth  liatli  yielded  lier  increase/'  in  wliich  case  the  literal 
harvest  in  Judea  is  made  the  type  of  a  rich  spiritual  har- 
vest over  the  whole  earth. — My  Grod,  avert  from  our  land 
at  this  time  the  horrors  of  an  impending  famine  ;  and  let 
the  fruit  of  Thy  righteous  judgments  be,  that  all  nations 
shall  fear  Thee,  and  be  converted,  and  rejoice. 

Psalm  lxviii.  1-^. — The  literal  occasion  of  this  psalm 
is  conceived  to  have  been  the  great  procession  which  took 
place  at  the  removal  of  the  ark  from  the  house  of  Obed- 
edom.  The  Psalmist  is  reminded  of  the  analogous  march 
of  the  ark  and  people  of  Grod  through  the  wilderness. 
Accordingly,  we  find  that  there'  is  the  same  invocation  at 
the  outset  of  this  psalm,  which  Moses  lifted  up  when  the 
ark  was  set  in  motion.  (Nuih.  x.  35.)  There  was  much 
to  suggest  the  notion  of  enemies  at  the  time  of  this  cele- 
bration— for  it  was  in  virtue  of  a  rescue  from  their  hands, 
even  the  hands  of  the  Philistines,  that  they  had  now  the 
ark  to  bear  forward,  and  that  they  could  lift  their  song 
of  triumph.  And  associated  with  the  security  which 
Israel  nDw  erijSyed,  could  the  hyinxi  or  grateful  acknow- 
ledgment be  raised  to  the  God  of  battles,  for  His  restora- 
tion of  the  desolate  families,  and  relief  of  the  captives,  of 
their  sorely  harassed  and  subjugated,  but  now  victorious 
nation.  When  God  appears  in  behalf  of  the  righteous 
He  scatters  their  oppressors — as  the  Philistines  when 
driven  to  the  wilderness ;  or  even  the  Egyptians,  when 
punished  by  the  drying  up  of  that  river  on  which  they 
depend  for  all  their  fertility. 

7-17. — I  am  not  sure  if  I  ever  experienced  such  a  feel- 
ing of  the  sublime  as  in  reading  this  description  of  Israel's 
march  through  the  wilderness — and  it  is  fully  kept  up  in 


68  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxviii. 

our  metrical  version — "  Thy  glorious  marching  was/' 
And  the  effect  is  heightened  as  if  by  contrast,  when  fol- 
lowed wp  with  the  exceeding  softness  and  beauty  of  what 
comes  after — when  "  God  sent  His  plentiful  rain,  and 
confiiTfied  His  inheritance  when  it  was  weary/'  There 
are  probably  various  deliA^erances  celebrated  in  this  psalm 
— not  only  the  past  deliverance  from  Egypt,  historically, 
but  the  great  final  deliverance — and  perhaps  that  from 
the  captivity  of  Babylon,  prophetically.  Then  Israel  v\^as 
made  to  dwell  in  the  place  which  God  had  prepared 
for  them.  This  proclamation  to  march  out  of  Egypt  had 
many  to  bear  and  spread  it  abroad  through  the  hosts  of 
Israel.  There  was  often  the  flight  and  overthrow  of 
kings  when  God  appeared  for  His  people.  And  what  a 
contrast  between  their  state  of  degradation  when  captives 
or  slaves,  and  their  state  of  glory  when  the  victory  was 
theirs  ! — Then  follows  the  signalization  of  the  hill  over  all 
other  hills,  where  the  sanctuaiy  is  in  which  God  dwells, 
possessed  of  all  the  power  which  He  manifested  in  Sinai, 
when  a  retinue  of  all  the  agencies  in  nature  was  visibly 
at  His  command. 

18-35. — But  mixed  up  with  all  the  literalities  of  the 
t}^ical,  the  great  Antitype  shines  forth  in  this  high, 
sacred  composition.  We  have  positive  evidence  for  Christ 
in  this  psalm,  in  Eph.  iv.  8 — after  which  we  need  be  at 
no  loss  for  objects  in  the  future  triumph  and  victoiy  of 
His  cause  adequate  to  the  loftiest  expressions  which  we 
here  meet  with.  The  Ascension  is  quite  obvious.  The 
"  leading  of  captivity  captive  ''  may  signify — Thou  hast 
made  innumerable  captives — or  2)erhaps,  Thou  hast  cap- 
tivated him,  even  Satan,  who  had  brought  our  whole 
species  into  capti^^ty  and  bondage.      Who  can  fail  to 


PSALM  Lxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  60 

recognise,  in  the  gifts  wliich  lie  received  for  the  rebel- 
lious, His  dispensation  of  the  Sj^irit  to  them  who  believe 
on  Him  ?  What  is  to  issue  from  death,  whether  a  resur- 
rection of  life  or  of  damnation,  is  at  His  sovereign  dispo- 
sal. There  is  every  likelihood  of  allusions  here  to  the 
great  contest  of  the  Book  of  Revelation  —  Wliat  a  signifi- 
cant expression  for  the  impenitent — "that  he  goeth  on 
still  in  his  trespasses/'  But  God  has  in  reserve  for  His 
people  still  another  restoration.  "He  will  bring  them 
ao-ain,  as  of  old,  from  Bashan  and  the  Red  Sea  to  their 
own  land.  His  people  will  "  see  Him  whom  thev  have 
pierced/'  perhajDS  when  His  feet  stand  on  the  Mount  of 
Olives,  and  Jerusalem  will  again  become  the  great  cen- 
tral sanctuary,  by  becoming  the  metropolis  of  the  Chris- 
tian world.  God  hath  made  strong  the  "  Man  of  His 
right  hand ;"  and  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  our  streng-th- 
ener  do  we  pray  that  God  would  confirm  and  perfect  His 

own  work  in  our  souls Yerse  80  is  difficult.     There  are 

translations  (Horsley's)  which  make  as  if  the  customs  of  the 
nations  which  are  here  meant  were  adverted  to — though 
the  conversion  of  Egypt  and  Ethiopia  is  afterwards  more 

plainly  set  forth This  magnificent  ode  closes  with  an 

ascription  of  glory  to  the  Supreme  Governor  of  all  na- 
tions, and  more  especially  of  His  own  people. 

Psalm  lxix.  1-12. — This  is  conceived  by  Mason  Good 
to  have  been  written  when  David  was  in  greatest  peril 
and  perplexity  from  the  rebellion  of  Absalom.  It  suits 
the  supposition  of  its  having  been  written  while  David 
was  smarting  under  the  remorse  and  disgrace  of  his 
humiliating  fall.  Then  his  enemies  would  arise  in  full 
ciy  against  him ;  and  his  veiy  piety  would  afibrd  matter 


70  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxix. 

of  provocation  and  triumpli  to  his  deriding  and  ungodlj 
adversaries.  "We  can  imagine  that  in  the  softness  of  his 
contrite  feeling  and  abashment,  he  would  concede  more 
to  his  persecutors  than  he  ought — were  it  but  to  purchase 
their  silence.  He  appeals  to  God,  who  knew  what  his 
guilt  was ;  and  as  in  another  psalm,  confesses  that  against 
Him,  and  Him  only  he  had  sinned.  He  prays  that  the 
pious  among  the  people  might  not  be  put  to  shame  be- 
cause of  his  scandal — seeing  that  his  very  devotedness  to 
God,  and  zeal  for  His  seiTice,  made  him  more  the  song 
of  drunkards,  and  the  contempt  of  those  of  his  own  kin- 
dred, than  he  would  othei-wise  have  been.  But  let  me 
not  overlook  the  direct  application  of  verse  9  to  Christ, 
by  His  disciples,  in  John  ii.  17 — though  not  expressly 
sanctioned  by  the  evangelist  himself  It  proves  a  preva- 
lent disposition  among  the  Jews  to  interpret  of  Christ 
much  in  the  Psalms  where  the  reference  is  not  altogether 
obvious. 

13-28.— What  a  blessed  phrase— "the  tmth  of  Thy 
salvation  ! '' — Let  me  build  my  confidence  upon  it,  that 
with  a  full  reliance  on  the  ti-uth  and  mercy  of  God,  my 
prayer  may  be  acceptable.  These  prayers  and  pleadings, 
and  professions  of  helplessness  are,  nevertheless,  suited 
Ho  our  Saviour  in  His  humiliation;  and  that  they  are 
actually  His  we  have  an  argument  from  the  gall  and 
^-inegar  of  verse  21,  administered  to  Him  on  the  cross. 
See  particularly  John  xix.,  where  we  read  that  vinegar 
was  given  to  Him  in  consequence  of  His  saying  "  I  thirst,"' 
■ — which  saying  He  uttered  that  "  the  Scripture  might  be 
fulfilled.""  Again,  the  imprecation  of  verses  22,  23,  is  ex- 
pressly referred  by  Paul  to  the  unbelieving  and  persecut- 
ing Jews  as  the  objects  of  it.     And  most  true  it  is,  as  in 


PSALM  Lxx.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  71 

verse  26,  that  it  was  God  who  had  smitten  the  SaAdour. 
and  wounded  Him  for  our  transgressions :  and  further 
time,  that  the  Jews  did  add  iniquity  unto  iniquity ;  ana 
that  all  who  were  not  of  the  election  were  blotted  out  of 
the  hook  of  life,  and  were  not  written  with  the  righteous. 
Yet  David  is  the  author  here — (Rom.  xi.  9) — though  I 
believe  the  psalm  to  be  rightly  characterized  by  Horslev 
as  "Messiah's  complaint  of  the  impenitent  Jews — ^Ilis 
enemies.''  It  is  interesting  to  mark  the  strong  Scriptural 
evidences  of  application  to  Christ  in  the  Psalms. 

29-36. — This  passage  is  not  to  be  deemed  inapplicable 
to  the  Saviour  because  of  its  professions  of  helplessness — ■ 
for  we  know  that  He  was  in  such  circumstances  as  re- 
duced Him  to  cries  and  tears,  and  strong  supplications ; 
and  we  also  know  that  He  was  delivered  from  death  in 
that  He  feared,  and  so  experienced  a  salvation.  He  was 
also  set  up  on  high  by  the  Father,  who  exalted  Him  to 
His  own  right  hand.  It  is  true  that  for  some  of  the 
clauses  here  we  find  a  more  direct  explanation  in  viewing 
them  as  the  utterances  of  David  regarding  himself — as 
when  he  speaks  of  praise  and  thanksgiving  being  better 
than  sacrifice — ^though  some  would  be  can-ied  forward  to 
the  sacrifice  of  the  cross,  as  being  better  than  the  offerings 
of  the  law.  The  humble  are  encouraged  by  the  expe- 
riences of  those  who  obtain  relief  and  enlargement  from 
God. — 0  may  I  seek  God  more  diligently  and  live.  He 
is  the  hearer  and  answerer  of  prayer;  and  will  mani- 
fest a  greater  salvation  than  has  yet  been  realized,  in 
the  return  of  Israel  to  their  own  land,  and  the  spread  of 
Christianity  among  the  nations. 

Psalm  lxx. — This  psalm  is  substantially  a  repetition  ot 


72  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READLXGS.  psalm  lxxi. 

the  last  part  of  Psalm  xl — wliicli  may  have  been  a  pra;>tr 
that  availed  him  on  some  former  occasion  of  distress, 
again  lifted  up  on  the  recurrence  of  a  new  occasion  of 
the  same  kind.  According  to  its  title,  it  is  a  psalm  of 
recollection.  Bishop  Horslev  conceives  the  fortieth  psalm 
to  be  the  utterance  of  Messiah  risen  from  the  dead,  re- 
turning thanks  for  the  accomplishment  of  His  work,  and 
praying  for  its  final  effect.  This  does  not  seem  to  com- 
port well  with  the  latter  half  of  that  psalm,  and  more 
especially  with  the  last  part  of  it,  which  is  identical  with 
the  present  psalm.  The  way  in  which  both  he  and  Bishop 
Home  get  over  this  is  by  the  supposition  that  Christ  is 
here  praying  in  the  name  of  that  Church,  which  was  one 
with  Himself,  in  virtue  of  the  mystical  union  between 
Him  as  the  Head,  and  the  Church  as  the  body.  It  is  in 
this  sense  that  they  understand  His  importunities  to  be 
in  behalf  of  those  for  whom  He  ever  liveth  to  make 
intercession ;  and  that  thus  He  could  implore  help,  and 
pray  against  enemies,  and  j)rofess  Himself  to  be  poor 
and  needy.  Certain  it  is,  that  while  verse  4  is  peculiarly 
appropriate,  as  from  Christ,  for  those  that  were  seeking 
after  God  through  Him,  it  is  also  a  prayer  that  we  might 
well  lift  up  for  ourselves. — Give  me  joy  in  believing.  Let 
me  love  Thy  salvation;  and  enable  me,  in  the  secure 
possession  of  it,  to  magnify,  and  gratefully  to  praise  Tjiy 
holy  name. 

Psalm  lxxl  1-11. — Tliis  psalm  seems  to  have  been 
composed  by  David  late  in  life ;  when  he  still  experi- 
enced that  in  the  world  he  had  tribulation,  though  in 
Him  who  ruleth  the  world  and  all  its  concerns,  he  had 
peace.     He  made  his  escape  from  the  evils  of  life  to  the 


PSALM  Lxxi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  73 

right  quarter  ;  and  I  mark  it  as  one  of  the  chief  notabilia 
of  Scrij^ture,  he  made  God  the  habitation  to  which  he  re- 
sorted continually. — Be  Thou  at  all  times  my  refuge  and 

my  hiding-place,  0  God Horsley  is  at  a  loss  in  regard 

to  this  psalm,  as  not  suiting  David,  because  he  had  no 
trouble  ;  and  not  suiting  Jesus  Christ,  who  had  no  old  age. 
I  believe  that  David  had  his  troubles,  though  not  ex- 
pressly recorded ;  but  they  may  be  w^ell  imagined  from 
the  very  existence  of  Joab,  whom  he  had  still  to  endure, 
and  from  the  outbreaking  of  Adonijah,  who  had  a  power- 
ful party  to  go  along  with  him.  Let  us  therefore  not  only 
ascribe  this  composition  but  apply  it  to  David,  who  here 
celebrates  the  goodness  of  God  to  him  from  his  youth  up 
— taking  a  retrospect  of  all  the  hazards  and  vicissitudes 
through  which  he  had  passed,  and  his  escape  from  which 
made  him  a  wonder  to  many.  That  there  were  still  con- 
spiracies and  plottings  and  calculations  upon  his  weak- 
ness in  old  age,  is  too  manifest. 

12-24. — He  turns  from  his  enemies  to  God  in  prayer, 
confident  that  He  would  bring  them  to  shame,  and  do 
mercifully  and  righteously  by  himself. — Ever  blessed  be 
Thy  name,  0  God,  that  Thy  righteousness  is  so  bound  up 
with  Thy  salvation,  that  Thou  canst  at  once  be  a  just 

God  and  a  Saviour To  "  go  in  the  strength  of  the  Lord," 

and  to  "  make  mention  of  His  righteousness,  even  of  His 
only,''  (another  of  the  notabilia,)  is  to  combine  the  work 
of  our  sanctification  with  justification  by  faith  alone. 
David  had  in  many  compositions  made  declaration  of 
God  and  His  works  ;  and  he  prays  to  be  spared  for  fur- 
ther declarations — not  having,  as  it  were,  yet  uttered  all 

His  mind This  and  the  next  psalm  are  conceived  by 

Mason  Good  to  have  been  his  two  last ....  To  increase  the 

VOL.  IIL  D 


74  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxxii. 

greatness  of  David,  may  have  been  to  increase  tliat  of  liis 
house,  by  the  triumphs  of  that  kingdom  over  which  there 
reigneth  Him  who  is  both  David's  Son  and  David's  Lord 
■ — the  root  and  the  offspring  of  Jesse. 

Psalm  lxxii.  1-11. — This  noble  composition  bears  an 
undoubted  reference  both  to  Solomon  and  to  Christ. 
The  spirit  of  judgment  was  given  abundantly  to  Solomon, 
and  the  histoiy  of  his  reign  bears  testimony  to  the  right- 
eousness and  wisdom  of  his  judicial  sentences.  But 
the  prophecy  soon  expands  to  the  character  and  doings 
of  Him  who  is  greater  than  Solomon If  verse  3  re- 
ceive the  literal  application,  it  may  signify  that  the 
strongly  garrisoned  mountains,  and  the  strictly  adminis- 
tered justice  on  those  banditti  who  lurked  among  the  hiUs, 
would  secure  the  protection  and  tranquillity  of  Judea ;  if 
the  spiritual,  it  might  describe  the  blessed  state  of  the  land 
when  the  Messiah  Himself  ruled  over  it.  The  endurance 
of  this  reign  is  stated  by  such  expressions  as  can  only  have 
their  adequate  fulfilment  in  Christ. — 0  may  the  living 
water  of  which  Thou  spakest  to  the  woman  of  Samaria 
be  poured  upon  me  abundantly.  The  extent  of  the 
kingdom,  too,  is  applicable,  in  all  its  completeness,  only 
to  the  Saviour.  It  is  true  that  Solomon  received  great 
homage  in  his  day  from  the  potentates  around  him  ;  but 
these  offerings  were  only  the  typical  samples  of  that  uni- 
versal lordship  which  Christ  will  exercise  over  all  kings 
and  all  nations. 

12-20. — This  passage,  though  applicable  both  to  type 
and  antit}q)e  is  far  more  obviously  and  prominently  so 
to  the  latter.  The  preciousness  of  the  subjects'  blood 
;n  the  sight  of  their  monarch,  seems  to  denote  the  favour 


PSALM  Lxxni.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  75 

which  Christ  bears  to  His  martyrs,  far  more  than  the 
tenderness  of  Solomon  for  the  lives  of  his  people.  Again, 
the  prayer  that  should  be  made  for  him  suits  better  with 
the  human  and  earthly  monarch.  But,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  productiveness  of  the  corn  here  spoken  of  seems 
to  denote  a  great  deal  more  than  the  fertility  of  Judea — 
even  the  rapid  extension  of  the  Church  from  small  be- 
ginnings, like  the  growth  of  the  mustard  tree  from  its 
minute  seed,  or  the  working  of  leaven  throughout  the 
mass  wherewith  it  is  incorporated.  And  who  can  mistake 
the  application,  as  to  any  other  than  Christ,  of  what  is 
here  said  respecting  both  the  universality  and  perpetuity 
of  the  kingdom  described  by  the  prophet  and  in  his  eye  ? 
Surely  it  is  He  who  is  meant  in  whom  the  promise  made 
to  Abraham  had  its  fulfilment — even  "  that  in  His  seed 
all  the  families  of  the  earth  should  be  blessed."  It  is  only 
of  Him  we  can  say,  that  "  the  whole  earth  shall  be  filled 
with  His  glory.''. . .  Horsley  imagines  the  last  verse  to 
be  referable  not  to  the  whole  of  David's  written  prayers 
collectively,  but  to  the  prayers  of  this  particular  psalm, 
as  if  he  had  said,  "  I  have  now  uttered  all  the  wishes  of 
my  heart.  Grant  me  but  the  petitions  of  this  psalm,  and 
I  am  fully  gratified." 

Psalm  lxxiil  1-14. — God  is  good  to  the  "  Israelite  in- 
deed, in  whom  there  is  no  guile,"  even  to  such  as  are  of  a 
clean  or  sincere  heart.  But  the  psalmist,  who  is  here  not 
David  but  Asaph,  was  on  the  eve  of  slipping  away  from 
this  confidence  ;  and  this  because  of  the  prosperity  of  the 

wicked The  psalm  is  conceived  to  have  been  written 

on  the  eve  of  Absalom's  rebellion,  when  the  irreligious 
party  were  in  great  force,  and  had  become  boastful  and 


76  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxxiiz. 

violent,  and  in  the  proud  consciousness  of  strength  were 
emboldened  to  all  sorts  of  lordly  and  insolent  oppression 
— defying  God  in  heaven,  and  walking  lawlessly  abroad 
upon  the  earth.  This  was  very  staggering  to  Asaph  and 
to  all   God's  people  who  were  on  the  side  of  piety  and 

loyalty Horsley  translates  verse  10  into — "  Therefore 

his  people  sit  wo-begone,  and  waters  are  abundantly  wrung 
from  them/'  Certain  it  is  that  their  outward  state  v\^as 
in  complete  contrast  with  that  of  the  prosperous  ungodly, 
who  even  denied  the  omniscience  of  the  all-seeing  God ; 
and  so  they  were  tempted  to  think  that  all  their  faithful- 
ness to  God,  and  all  their  freedom  from  the  transgressions 
of  His  law,  were  of  no  avail  to  them — so  as  almost  to  join 
the  wicked  in  their  infidelity,  and  to  say  with  them,  "  Is 
there  knowledge  in  the  Most  High  1" 

15-28. — The  psalmist  here  corrects  his  last  words,  and 
admits  them  to  be  such  as  if,  unrecalled,  might  have  the 
effect  of  seducing,  and  proving  a  stumbling-block  to  the 
children  of  God.  It  was  a  great  perplexity  to  him- 
self till  he  explored  the  secret  of  God's  dealings  with 
men,  and  looked  at  their  consummation  in  the  latter  end 
of  the  ^vicked,  who  were  nourished  unto  the  day  of 
slaughter — the  day  of  reckoning  and  vengeance  for  their 
misdeeds.  What  a  contrast  between  their  fair-show 
prosperity,  and  the  humiliation  which  they  are  brought 
to  at  last !  But  while  the  enigma  was  unresolved,  he 
had  well-nigh  slipped — ^he  had  almost  sunk  into  the  mire 
of  ungodliness.  And  yet  all  the  while  God  was  with 
him,  even  throughout  the  season  of  his  doubts  and  mur- 
murs ;  and  he  had  brought  him  forth  of  these  by  the 
light  which  He  poured  into  his  mind — so  that  he  could 
now  say,  even  amid  the  decay  of  all  his  carnal  securities, 


PSALM  Lxxiv.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  77 

that,  nevertlieless,  "God  was  the  strength  of  his  heart, 
and  portion  for  ever/'  This  last  I  would  put  among  the 
notahilia ;  and  so  also  the  precious  24th  verse,  where  the 
psalmist  relies  upon  his  God  for  guidance  here,  and  glory 
hereafter. — Let  this  prove  my  experience,  0  God.  Let 
me  ever  draw  near  unto  Thee,  and  experience  so  as  to 
declare  how  good  a  thing  it  is  to  have  my  faith  and 
fellowship  in  God. 

Psalm  lxxiv.  1-11. — The  occasion  of  this  psalm  is  re- 
ferred, and  with  prohability,  to  the  invasion  of  Shishak, 
under  the  reign  of  Rehoboam.  (2  Chron.  xii.  9.) ...  Asaph 
is  held  to  have  been  a  descendant  of  the  first  Asaph, 

having  the  same  name "  The  rod  of  thine  inheritance  " 

is  conceived  to  have  been  a  phrase  grounded  on  the 
Jewish  custom  of  dividing  the  lots,  whether  of  tribes  or 
families,  by  measuring  with  a  rod,  or  even  casting  the 
lot  for  the  determination  of  respective  portions,  done  in 
some  way  by  means  of  a  rod.  TVe  read  of  a  divining  rod. 
The  prayer  is  that  God  would  stir  Himself,  and  draw 
nigh  to  the  scene  of  those  violences  which  had  been 
perpetrated  everywhere  under  the  hostile  standard  of 
invaders,  and  which  were  stiU  going  on.  They  had 
burnt  up  the  places  of  worship,  and  were  now  proceeding 
against  the  temple,  which  they  partially  spoiled,  and  had 
perhaps  begun  to  destroy,  when  arrested  by  the  over- 
ruling power  and  providence  of  God.  What  made  them 
more  helpless  was  that  there  was  then  no  seer  amongst 
them — as  in  the  days  (1  Sam.  iii.  1)  when  the  word  of 
God  was  precious,  or  scarce,  and  there  was  no  open 
vision.  And  so  Asaph  was  thrown  upon  the  resource  of 
a  direct  application  to  God  in  prayer. 


78  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxxv. 

12-23. — The  psalmist  recurs  to  tlie  ancient  doings  of 
God  on  behalf  of  the  now  oppressed  and  sorely  afflicted 
Israel ;  and  so  he  adverts  to  the  miracles  of  deliverance 
in  Egypt  and  the  wilderness Leviathan  and  the  dra- 
gons are  understood  to  he  Pharaoh  and  his  mighty  men. 
There  is  then  a  reference  made  to  the  still  more  ancient 
work  of  Creation — where  we  meet  with  the  singularly 
beautiful  expression — "  Thou  hast  set  all  the  borders  of 
the  earth.''  Thus  fortified  in  his  assurance  of  God's 
power,  he  recurs  to  importunate  solicitation  for  help 
against  the  enemy.  The  reproaches  and  blasphemies  of 
the  heathen,  when  ^dctorious  over  Israel,  against  Israel's 
God,  are  frequently  noticed  in  Scripture.  He  reminds 
God  of  the  covenant,  and  deprecates  the  transportation 
of  his  countrymen  into  those  idolatrous  lands  where  all 

sorts  of  cruelty  and  suffering  awaited  them "  Return 

ashamed,"  in  verse  21,  is  translated  by  Horsley,  "sit 
ashamed."  It  fonns  a  good  and  right  argument  with 
God,  when  the  object  for  which  suit  is  made  is  represent- 
ed to  be  His,  and  He  is  asked  to  plead  His  own  cause. 

Psalm  lxxv. — Al-taschith  means  to  "  destroy  not."  . . 
Though  the  psalmist  here  is  said  to  be  Asaph,  yet  he  per- 
sonates David,  and  probably  on  the  eve  of  his  succeeding  to 
the  monarchy  of  all  Israel,  when  he  transferred  his  govern- 
ment from  Hebron  to  Jerusalem.  He  promises  that  when 
he  receives  the  power  he  will  use  it  aright;  and  more 
especially  that  he  will  restrain  wicked  rulers.  He  ac- 
knowledges God  to  be  the  all  in  all  of  his  coming  promo- 
tion; and  renouncing  all  dependence  on  the  creature, 
gives  the  glory  of  all  his  prosperity  and  preferment  to 
Him  who  sittetli  above,  and  to  whom  all  the  vicissitudes 


PSALM  Lxxvi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  79 

of  fortune  among  men  ouglit  to  be  referred.  He  was 
sorely  exercised  at  that  time  by  the  wickedness  and 
violence  of  such  men  as  Joab  and  others ;  but  in  the 
righteous  vengeance  of  the  Judge  on  high,  he  prophesies 
the  destruction  that  awaits  them.  So  long  as  we  apply 
this  composition  to  David  we  may  conceive  of  "the  earth" 
in  verse  S,  that  it  is  but  the  land  or  countiy  of  Judea  ; 
but  let  it  be  understood  as  a  personation  of  the  Messiah, 
and  the  earth  should  be  \aewed  in  its  most  extensive 
sense,  as  that  to  which  the  administration  of  the  exalted 
Redeemer  is  fully  commensurate,  whose  day  of  vengeance 
on  His  enemies  is  di'awing  nigh — even  the  day  of  the  Son 
of  Man. 

Psalm  lxxvi. — This  psalm  seems  as  suitable  to  the 
destruction  of  the  Assyrians  in  Hezekiah's  time,  as  to  any 
event  during  the  reign  of  David.  Asaph  might  have  been 
the  usual  family  name  of  that  musical  race Some  con- 
ceive verse  4  to  be  an  apostrophe  to  Mount  Zion  ;  others 
would  have  it  to  be  the  kingdom  of  Judali  that  is  here 
spoken  of  as  more  illustrious  than  the  kingdoms  that  pour 
forth  their  invaders  upon  other  territories  than  their  own. 
I  have  conceived  that  a  mountain  of  prey,  the  delight 
of  huntsmen  in  pursuit  of  game,  would  be  greatly  prized 
by  them,  and  might  suggest  an  image  expressive  of  the 
value  which  the  psalmist  felt,  whether  for  Mount  Zion,  or 
the  kingdom  of  which  it  was  the  emblem,  or  lastly,  the 
King  who  ruleth  over  all. — dive  me  to  stand  in  awe  of 
Thee  and  of  Thy  judgments,  0  Grod.  Keep  me  from  all 
those  sins  for  which  the  wrath  of  Grod  cometh  on  the 
children  of  disobedience.  Let  me  fear  Thee  and  not  man. 
Enable  me  to  pay  unto  Thee  my  vows.     Thou  art  to  be 


80  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         psalm  lxxvii. 

lad  in  reverence,  0  God ;  nor  should  we  stand  in  dread 
of  man,  tlie  excesses  of  whose  wrath  Thou  canst  control. 

Psalm  lxxyii.  1-12. — Some  ascribe  this  psalm  to  the 
time  of  the  invasion  under  Rehoboam,  and  others  to  the 

Babylonish   Captivity Jeduthun  is  thought  by  some 

-to  be  a  proper  name;  others  interpret  the  title  as  to 
:he  Supreme  on  this  Dispensation.  It  was  evidently 
.written  for  a  time  of  distress,  whether  by  Asaph,  an  indi- 
vidual, or  for  the  band  of  Asaph,  and  perhaps  by  one  of 
their  number — it  being  supposed  that  the  various  official 
oands  in  the  Temple  were  designated  by  the  names  of  their 
lirst  or  chief  leaders.  At  all  events,  we  have  here  the 
wreathing  utterance  of  one  who  felt  God  to  be  his  only 
nelp  and  refuge  in  the  day  of  calamity  ;  and  who,  when 
overwhelmed,  went  to  the  Rock  that  was  higher  than  he. 
. .  The  '•  soul  refusing  to  be  comforted''  is  a  notabile. — Save 
me,  0  God,  from  those  sores  of  the  spirit  which  might  well 
be  called  running  sores,  on  which  the  soul  broods  and 
dwells,  and  gives  itself  up  to  painful  reveries,  which  pass 
like  streams  through  the  inner  man,  made  up  of  the  waters 
of  bitterness.  But  he  lays  an  arrest  upon  himself,  and  re- 
calls this  process.  He  recurs  to  seasons  of  former  joyful- 
ness,  even  in  his  own  personal  histoiy,  and,  farther  still, 
to  the  past  history  of  God's  dealings  with  His  people.  He 
rebukes  himself  for  his  despondency  as  he  thinks  of  these 
things,  and  stays  his  confidence  on  the  unchangeable  God 
— remembering  the  years  of  the  right  hand  of  the  Most 
High,  when  He  gloriously  manifested  His  power  on  the 
side  of  Israel. 

13-20. — ^There  is  a  momentous  principle  in  the  assertion 
of  "  God's  way  being  in  the  sanctuary."     It  is  this  which 


PSALM  Lxxviii.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  81 

gives  rise  to  all  tlie  difficulties  tliat  are  felt  here,  and  it  is 
this  which  will  explain  all  hereafter.  The  whole  proce- 
dure of  God  bears  upon  the  designs  of  a  great  moral 
administration,  and  can  only  be  understood  by  a  reference 
to  the  things  of  heaven  and  not  of  earth,  or  to  things, 
the  purpose  and  final  issue  of  which  we  still  behold  but 
darklv.  To  our  limited  discernment,  there  is  still  much 
to  wonder  at.  The  strength  of  the  Godhead  is  palpable, 
but  there  remains  a  deep  enigma  upon  His  counsels,  and 
the  policy  of  His  government.  By  His  power  He  hath 
done  great  things,  which  are  here  enumerated — His 
miracles  of  might  in  conducting  Israel  out  of  Egypt,  of 
which  we  are  presented  in  this  psalm  with  a  magnifi- 
cent outline.  He  is  here  set  before  us  as  the  Omnipo- 
tent, yet  incomprehensible  God,  whose  footsteps  are  not 
known.  How  applicable  to  the  secrets  of  geology — to  the 
processes  now  going  on  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  and  in 
the  deep  places  of  the  earth  !  What  a  mystery  is  the  in- 
terior of  our  globe  ;  and  how  impenetrable  by  us  the  pur- 
pose of  those  successive  revolutions  whereof  our  earth  has 
been  the  theatre !  Yet  what  a  manifestation  withal  of 
the  Divine  force  and  sovereignty  in  those  great  catas- 
trophes which  terminate  an  old  and  usher  in  a  new  era ! 
Mark,  however,  the  subserviency  of  the  physical  to  the 
moral,  and  in  this  instance  of  the  miracles  at  the  Red 
Sea  to  the  history  of  the  Church. 

Psalm  lxxviii.  1-8. — This  psalm  is  generally  regarded 
to  have  been  prepared  for  one  of  the  public  and  national 
festivals.  It  may  be  called  an  historical  psalm,  being 
chiefly  a  rehearsal  of  the  perversities  of  rebellious  Israel 
— so  that  it  may  be  teraied  a  confessional  psalm ;  while, 


85  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       psalm  lxxviii. 

no  doubt,  tlie  continued  forbearance  and  goodness  of  God, 
in  the  midst  of  sucli  multiplied  provocations,  should  have 
enhanced  the  gratitude  of  the  w^orshippers.  Though  it  be 
called  a  parable,  this  does  not  necessarily  imply  either  an 
enigmatical  or  a  fictitious  comj)Osition — the  appellation 
being  extended  to  any  grave  or  weighty  piece  of  instruction. 
. . .  One  likes  to  contemplate  the  securities  which  obtained 
among  the  children  of  Israel  for  an  authentic  tradition 
from  one  age  to  another  of  their  old  history.  It  was  laid, 
indeed,  as  a  solenm  duty  upon  them,  that  they  should 
hand  down,  from  generation  to  generation,  "  what  the  Lord 
had  done  for  them ;''  so  that  parents  were  bound  to  in- 
form their  children  in  the  historical,  as  well  as  to  instruct 
them  in  the  preceptive  and  doctrinal,  parts  of  their  reli- 
gion. (See  Deut.  vi.  7;  xi.  19;  Josh.  iv.  21,  22,  &c.)— 0 
my  Grod,  let  my  heart  be  set  aright,  and  my  spirit  be 
steadfast  with  God.  Tliis  last  expression  I  should  rank 
among  the  notabilia  of  Scripture. 

9-18. — What  is  ascribed  to  Ephraim  need  not  be  under- 
stood as  cowardice  on  any  particular  occasion  ;  but  faith- 
lessness to  their  outset  professions — more  especially  in 
that  they  kept  not  the  covenant  to  which  they  had  re- 
peatedly made  themselves  a  party,  as  in  the  days  of 
Joshua — and,  doubtless,  on  many  other  solemn  and  public 
occasions  —  The  defections  of  Israel  might  well  be  called 
wonderful — phenomena  in  the  moral  world  almost  as 
man^ellous  as  were  those  miracles  which,  though  fresh  in 
their  recollection,  utterly  failed  in  keeping  them  steadfast 
with  God.  These  miracles  are  here  enumerated,  in  the 
face  of  which,  and  after  the  brief  inteiwal  of  strong  sensa- 
tion for  a  time,  they  sinned  yet  more  against  God,  and 
provoked  Him  by  their  constant  waywardness  and  per- 


PSALM  Lxxviii.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  83 

versities.  They  tempted  God,  tried  His  i:)atience  over 
and  over  again,  made  as  it  were  another  experiment 
upon  it ;  and,  from  tlie  expression  of  "  tempting  Him 
in  their  heart,"'  it  would  seem  as  if  they  had  made  it  a 
thing  of  mental  calculation  whether  He  would  still  bear 
with  them. 

19-28. — But  they  did  more  than  thus  tempt  God  in 
their  hearts.  They  spake  openly  with  their  mouths 
against  Him. — It  was  a  tiTily  marvellous  audacity  in  the 
midst  of  such  miracles  and  of  such  manifestations ;  and 
the  psalmist  seems  quite  alive  to  its  enormity.  No  wonder 
that  the  anger  of  heaven  should  have  been  kindled  against 
such  daring  challenges  as  they  uttered  in  the  face  of  those 
manifold  signs  and  wonders  that  had  been  exhibited  be- 
fore them. — And  let  us,  too,  feel  the  criminality  of  not 
believing  and  not  trusting.  Let  us  take  warning  from 
the  results  of  the  provocation  in  the  wilderness,  lest  we 

fall,  too,  after  the  same  example  of  unbelief The  manna 

is  perhaps  called  "  angels'  food,''  on  the  same  principle 
that  rain  is  called  the  "  river  of  God,"  coming,  as  it  did, 
from  above,  wherewith  we  associate  the  locality  of  heaven. 
There  are  various  other  interj^retations  given  of  it ;  but  the 
very  expression  of  its  being  "  the  com  of  heaven,"  seems 
to  warrant  the  viev/  I  have  just  now  given  of  it.  Could 
it  be  that  the  psalmist's  notion  was  the  same  with  that 
which  might  have  obtained  among  the  Jews  in  general, 
as  if  this  manna  was  literally  the  food  of  those  who  in- 
habited the  upper  regions,  and  accordingly  that  he  set 
forth  this  his  notion  in  the  composition  now  before  us  ? 
Though  it  were  so,  this  would  not  shake  my  faith  in  the 
plenary  inspiration  of  this  psalm — even  as  Paul's  intro- 
duction of  some  of  his  own  notions,  when  he  spoke  as  a 


84  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       psalm  lxxviii. 


fnan,  shakes  not  my  faitli  in  the  plenan^  inspiration  of 
tJie  epistle  ^yllicll  contains  tliem. 

December,  1845. 

29-89. — Before  they  were  estranged  from  their  lust,  or 
before  they  had  begun  to  nauseate  the  flesh  they  were 
eating  (See  Num.  xi.20) — "  He  slew  the  fattest  of  them/' 
or  "  slew  them  in  the  midst  of  their  fatnesses  " — that  is, 
of  their  gluttonies.  The  obstinacy  of  their  unbelief  is 
again  adverted  to,  and  mark  the  identity,  in  verse  32,  of 
their  sinning  and  not  believing  ;  on  which,  see  also  Heb. 
iii.  The  result  was,  that  God  did  consume  them  in  the 
wilderness,  where  they  had  to  remain  forty  years  —  It  is 
altogether  worthy  of  observation,  that  whereas  the  distress 
inflicted  upon  them  by  God  did  extort  their  cries  and 
their  confessions — which,  so  far  from  being  the  outpour- 
ings of  pure  and  genuine  repentance,  were  but  the  utter- 
ances of  flattery  and  fear,  their  hearts  not  being  right 
with  God,  nor  steadfast  in  adherence  to  Him  upon  His 
terms ;  yet,  even  because  of  their  misery  alone,  was  the 
compassion  of  God  called  forth  in  their  favour.  There  is 
herein  a  view  of  pity  in  its  state  of  singleness — not 
mercy,  or  the  pardon  of  sin  because  of  repentance — but 
pure  commiseration  for  the  "s\Tetchedness  of  its  objects. 
True,  it  is  said  to  be  forgiveness,  because  the  forbearance 

of  due  punishment ;  not,  however,  reconciliation We 

see  more  nakedly  in  this  exhibition  the  amiable  tender- 
ness of  God. 

40-49. — The  psalmist  continues,  or  ratner  reiterates, 
the  narrative  of  the  rebellions  of  Israel  —  Horsley,  in- 
stead of  "  limited,"  proposes  "  challenged,"  in  verse  41. 
Each  furnishes  a  suitable  meaning  ;  for  not  only  did  they, 
challenge  God,  they  distrusted  Him,  as  they  would  one 


PSALM  Lxxvm.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  85 

whose  power  and  inclination  together  were  not  large 
enough  for  their  deliverance  from  evil.  And  all  this  dis- 
trust and  disavowal  of  God  were  in  the  face  of  the  many- 
signal  evidences  He  had  given  of  Himself,  and  which 
must  still  have  been  fresh  in  their  recollection.  These 
were  still  in  their  remembrance,  though  they  did  not  call 
them  to  remembrance  ;  and  therefore  it  is  said,  that  "  they 
remembered  not  His  hand,  nor  the  day  of  their  deliver- 
ance.'' They  must  have  recollected  the  facts,  but  did  not 
turn  them  to  the  purpose  of  fortifying  and  preserving  their 
faith  in  God.  These  facts  are  here  presented  to  us  in 
fuller   detail   and   enumeration   than   before,    being   the 

plagues  of  Eg\^t Horsley  gives  a  good  illustration,  in 

his  notes,  of  verse  49,  in  that  he  regards  it  as  descrip- 
tive of  the  terror  and  distraction  and  mental  anguish  into 
which  the  Egyptians  were  thrown  by  these  inflictions  of 
evil  angels.  Which  angels,  however,  it  might  be  remarked, 
are  not  necessarily  the  angelic  spirits,  but  might  denote 
the  material  agencies  which  were  the  messengers  and  in 
struments  of  the  Divine  wrath. 

50-64. — After  finishing  his  description  of  Egypt's  cala- 
mities and  plagues,  he  contrasts  with  these  the  favour  and 
protection  and  guidance  bestowed  upon  Israel,  whose 
Shepherd  He  was — tending  them  like  a  flock  through  the 
wilderness. . .  ."This  mountain,"  in  verse  54,  miofht  be  the 
land  of  Canaan,  so  called  because  of  its  alpine  character. 
(See  Deut.  xxxii.  13  ;  Ezek.  xxxvi.  2.)  And  this  land,  as 
being  the  Holy  Land,  might  be  denominated  a  sanctuaiy. 
Or  it  may  be  JeiTisalem,  and  even  Mount  Zion  or  Mount 
Moriah,  which  was  on  a  border  of  the  Israelitish  posses- 
sion, even  to  the  time  of  David,  and  from  which  the  Jebu- 
sites  were  east  out  by  him.     It  was  the  right  hand  of 


86  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       psalm  lxxviii. 

God,  and  not  an  arm  of  flesli,  that  purcliased  or  acquired 
for  tlie  children  of  Israel  all  their  conquests.  But  soon 
after  their  settlement  in  the  promised  land,  did  they  fall 
into  their  wonted  relapses  ;  they  turned  adrift  and  aside 
from  the  way  in  which  God  would  have  them  to  walk ; 
they  moved  God  to  anger  with  their  idolatries,  times  and 
ways  without  number,  till  at  length  that  sorest  of  all 
inflictions  came  upon  them,  the  captivity  of  the  Ark — (1 
Sam.  iv.) — ^when  the  priests  Hophni  and  Phinehas  were 
slain,  and  the  widow  of  the  latter  did  not  live  to  lament 
him,  but,  overborne  by  a  sense  of  the  public,  more  per- 
haps than  the  private  calamity,  gave  up  the  ghost The 

Ark  is  in  verse  61,  termed  "  the  strength  and  the  glory 
of  the  God  of  Israel." 

65-72. — The  Lord  did  awake,  and  interpose  on  behalf 
of  Israel,  in  that  He  called  David  from  the  sheep-folds  to 
be  monarch  in  Israel ;  but  first  of  all  on  behalf  of  His 
ark — the  ark  of  His  strength — by  which  he  overthrew 

Dagon,  and  scattered  dismay  among  the  Philistines For 

the  explanation  of  verse  66  see  1  Sam.  v.  6,  9 How 

rapidly  in  these  descriptions  does  the  Psalmist  go  over 
large  stages  of  history — in  keeping  with  the  procedure  of 
Him  who  "knoweth  the  end  from  the  beginning,''  and 
w^ith  whom  "  a  thousand  years  are  as  one  day."  He  con- 
cludes with  the  elevation  of  David  to  the  throne,  and  with 
the  selection  of  Judah  as  the  metropolitan  tribe  of  Israel. 
..."  The  sanctuary  "  here  spoken  of  may  be  referred  to  the 
temple  of  Jerusalem,  which,  though  not  yet  built,  may 
have  been  seen  by  David  in  prophetic  vision — nay,  was  in 
great  part  provided  for  by  his  care.  No  doubt  the  temple 
has  long  been  razed  from  its  foundations ;  but  the  great 
spiritual  temple,  of  which  it  is  the  type,  is  stable  as  the 


TSALM  Lxxx.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  87 

eartli ;  naj,  will  outlast  the  present  economy  of  things. 
What  a  noble  conjunction  of  properties  for  a  ruler  in  the 
king  of  Israel — integrity  of  heart  and  skilfulness  of  hands! 
Grant  both,  0  Lord,  to  the  men  whom  Thou  mayest  raise  up 
for  the  prosperity  of  Thy  kingdom  and  Thy  cause  in  our  day. 

Psalm  lxxix. — Mason  Good  refers  this  psalm  to  the 
reign  of  Rehoboam,  and  Horsley  to  that  of  Manasseh. 
There  is  no  symptom  throughout  of  a  general  captivity  at 
this  time  ;  and  Jerusalem  had  only  been  defiled,  not  de- 
molished. The  Israelites  were  still  in  the  midst  of  their 
old  neighbours — the  objects  of  their  reproach  and  hostile 
triumph.  It  accords  very  well  with  the  ascription  of  this 
psalm  to  Rehoboam's  reign,  that  whereas  the  psalm  is  a 
deeply  penitential  confession  and  prayer,  we  read  that 
the  forces  of  the  enemy  were  withdra-v^Ti,  because  the 
people  had  humbled  themselves — perhaps  joining  publicly 
in  the  service  which  this  h}Tnn  set  before  them. — Let  Thy 
mercies  prevent  us — let  them  come  before,  or  anticipate 
a  destruction  that  will  be  also  inevitable.  It  was  a  fre- 
quent argument  with  the  penitent  Israelites — that  God 
would  pity  them  for  the  glory  of  His  own  name;  and  that 
the  heathen  might  not  speak  reproachfully  of  Him  or  of 
His  cause  —  It  is  possible  that  the  "  sighing  of  the  pri- 
soner ''  might  refer  to  Manasseh,  then  in  Babylon,  and  that 
some  of  his  fellow-captives  may  have  been  appointed  to 
die.  In  whichever  of  the  two  reigns  this  psalm  was  com- 
posed, it  would  seem  from  the  histoiy  that  its  j^rayer  had 
been  answered. 

Psalm  lxxx. — This  psalm  is  fastened,  by  various  critics, 
to  various  periods  of  the  Jewish  history.     If  it  be  true 


88  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  lxxxi. 

tliat  tlie  ascription  to  God  of  His  dwelling  between  the 
cnerubim  is  more  ancient  than  what  more  commonly 
obtained  after  that  Zion  had  become  His  dwelling-place, 
this  might  favour  the  notion  of  its  having  been  written 
in  the  reign  of  David.  Its  title  would  imply  that  it  Avas 
intended  as  the  memorial  of  a  happy  escape.  It  is  an 
extremely  beautiful  composition.  How  endearing  the 
title  of  the  "  Shepherd  of  Israel ! ''  and  how  descriptive  of 
Him  who  guided  His  people  through  the  wilderness  like 
a  flock  !  (Psalm  Ixxviii.  52.)  Wliat  importunate  plead- 
ings ! — Let  me  adopt  them,  and  pray  that  God  would  turn, 
and  cause  His  face  to  shine  upon  me,  and  save  me.  Wliat 
a  noble  specimen  of  poetiy  in  the  figure  here,  so  well 
sustained  and  amplified  !  Wliat  a  misconception  of  John- 
son's— that  sacred  subjects  did  not  admit  of  poetical 
embellishment ;  and  how  decisively  met  by  that  best  of 

all  refutations,  even  Scriptural  example "  The  Man  of 

God's  right  hand,''  and  "  the  Son  of  man,"  whom  He  had 
made  strong,  may  have  been  literally  and  primitively 
David  or  some  other  conqueror ;  but  surely  it  admits  of 
emphatic  application  to  Christ. — 0  quicken  me  together 
with  Him,  that  hencefonvard  I  may  call,  in  the  spirit  of 
adoption,  upon  Thy  name. 

Psalm  lxxxi. — Though  opinions  are  various  as  to  the 
date  of  this  psalm,  it  seems  generally  agreed  upon  that  it 
Avas  composed  for  the  feast  of  trumpets.  It  bears  every 
internal  appearance  of  this — as  being  an  ode  of  high 
gratulation,  and  where  the  performance  was  aided  by  high 
sounding:  instiniments.  The  reference  to  a  statute  and 
law,  as  the  warrant  of  their  celebration,  marks  it  to  have 
been  done  on  one  of  their  appointed  days  —  The  language 


PSAI.M  Lxxxii.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  80 

of  Egypt  was  not  understood,  according  to  some,  by  the 
Israelites — according  to  others,  by  God,  who  speaks  often 
of  people  as  not  knowing  them — not  recognising  them  as 
His,  looking  on  them  as  aliens,  refusing  to  acknowledge 

either  their  worship  or  their  ways The  "  secret  place  of 

thunder"  is  understood  to  be  Mount  Sinai,  where  God  held 
converse  with  the  people  of  Israel.  He  tells  them  that  if 
they  will  only  hearken  unto  Him,  He  will  at  all  times  be 
their  oracle  and  their  Guide — will  favour  them  with  His 
counsel  and  testimonies;  but  they  must  not  lapse  into 
idolatry,  or  go  after  the  false  oracles,  that  will  but  deceive 

and  lead  them  astray "  Open  thy  mouth  wide,  and  I 

will  fill  it,''  is  one  of  the  most  precious  of  our  Scripture 
notanda. — My  God,  let  my  faith  be  large  as  Thy  faithful- 
ness. What  an  impressive  utterance  from  God,  and  how 
demonstrative  of  His  wish  for  our  obedience  and  safety — 
"0  that  my  people  had  hearkened  unto  me,  and  Israel  had 
walked  in  my  ways  ! ''  There  is  to  us  a  deep  mysteriousness 
in  all  this ;  but  the  desire  of  God  for  our  salvation,  and 
right  moral  state,  is  here  most  obviously  manifested  ;  and 
let  us  proceed  on  that  which  is  obvious,  not  on  that  which 
is  obscure. 

Psalm  lxxxii. — This  psalm,  though  applicable  to  the 
times  of  David,  has  been  referred  by  Horsley  to  Jesus 

Christ  in  the  hands  of  His  judges  and  persecutors The 

appellation  of  "  gods  "  to  human  officials  has  been  most 
weakly  and  unwarrantably  pled  by  the  Socinians  against 

the  real  Godhead  of  Christ David  had  much  to  try  and 

exercise  him  in  the  wickedness  of  the  magnates  by  whom 
lie  was  surrounded,  and  under  whom  there  was  much  of 
violence  and  anarchy  in  the  Jewish  commonwealth.     And 


90  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        psalm  lxxxiit. 

to  walk  on  in  wickedness  is  to  walk  on  in  darkness  ;  and 
nothing  is  more  fitted  to  disturb  all  the  relations  of  so- 
ciety than  iniquity  in  high  places,  or  when  iniquity  is 
clothed  with  the  authority  of  office,  and  framed  by  a  law. 
Then,  truly,  all  the  foundations  of  the  earth,  or  of  the  land 
rather — all  the  securities  for  social  order  or  the  stability 
and  wellbeing  of  the  state,  are  out  of  course. — Then  fol- 
lows a  denunciation  on  these  haughty  oppressors,  with  a 
prayer  to  God  that  He  Himself  would  take  upon  Him  the 
judgment,  which  He  will  do  when  He  asserts  His  power 
and  supremacy  over  all  nations. 

Psalm  lxxxiit. — If  Assur  here  be  the  tribe  of  Asher, 
which  is  not  unlikely,  from  the  rebellious  character  of 
that  tribe,  this  psalm  may  have  been  composed  by  Da^dd 
about  the  time  of  his  ascending  the  throne  of  all  Israel, 
and  when  many  confederates  were  opposed  to  him.  He 
prays  here  for  protection  against  these.  He  was  beset 
with  the  craft  and  force  of  a  great  multitude  of  enemies, 
who  are  here  enumerated  as  bent  on  the  destruction  of 
Israel,  and  the  extii-pation  of  its  name  from  the  earth. 
Asher,  on  the  confines  of  Tyre,  may  have  entered  into  the 
same  combination ;  in  which,  we  have  no  doubt,  that  the 
old  and  still  subsisting  enmity  of  the  world  to  the  Church 
had  a  large  share.  Israel  must  not  only  have  been  a  sin- 
gularity, but  an  offence  and  an  eye-sore  amongst  the  sur- 
rounding nations.  The  psalmist  prays  that  they  might 
waver,  and  be  unsettled  as  a  wheel,  or  light  as  stubble 

which  the  wind  carrieth  away The  presers^ation  of  the 

name  and  worship  of  the  true  God  in  the  world  is  often 
pled  in  argTiment  and  prayer  for  the  protection  of  Israel 
against  the  heathen,  who  beset  them  on  every  side. 


PSALM  Lxxxv.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  gi^ 

Psalm  lxxxiv. — ^What  a  preciously  evangelical  psalm 
this  is,  full  of  savour  and  substance,  and  in  full  unison 
with  the  faith  and  spirit  of  an  advanced  Christianity  I 
We  have  here  the  longings  of  a  gracious  soul  after  God, 
and  its  consequent  delight  in  every  sensible  approach  to 
Him  ;  and  so  dear  to  the  taste  of  such  are  His  tabernacles 
and  holy  services — such  is  his  affection  for  the  very  locali- 
ties of  God's  house,  that  he  may  be  said  to  regard  with 
envy  the  swallow  which  builds  its  nest  near  the  altars. 
His  strength  is  in  God,  and  it  is  upheld  and  refreshed  by 
ordinances  as  from  a  pool ;  and  thus  does  he  meet  with 
cordials  even  in  this  vale  of  tears,  so  as  to  proceed  from  one 
degree  of  strength  to  another,  till  at  length  he  appears 
perfect  before  God. — Let  me  reiterate  the  heartfelt  prayer 
of  the  psalm.  My  God,  look  on  the  face  of  the  Messiah. 
He  is  my  shield  in  whom  I  trust,  and  on  whose  righteous- 
ness alone  it  is  that  I  ground  all  my  hopes  and  all  my  re- 
joicing before  Thee.  0  let  my  delight  be  in  Thy  service, 
and  give  me  a  more  intense  liking  than  heretofore  for 

social  worship,  and  for  the  fellowships  of  the  faithful 

And  what  a  pure  gospel  essence  in  the  petition  here  poured 
out  for  grace  and  glory — grace  here,  and  glory  hereafter 
— grace  as  the  step  and  the  preparative  for  glory. — Be 
a  light  and  a  defence  to  me,  0  God,  and  thus  at  once 
my  sun  and  my  shield ;  and  0  let  me  experience  the 
ti-uth  of  the  promise  given  here  to  them  who  walk  up- 
rightly. Enable  me  so  to  walk  by  ordering  my  steps  in 
Thy  word ;  and  give  me  the  blessedness  of  him  who  trusts 
in  Thee,  both  for  pardon  and  for  the  grace  of  obedience 
to  Thy  wiU. 

Psalm  lxxxv. — Another  psalm  replete  with  the  flavour 


92  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        psalm  lxxxvi. 

of  evaugelism.  It  may  have  been  Avritten  for  the  return 
of  the  Jews  from  some  of  their  earlier  captivities,  but 
would  suit  verv  well  the  times  of  Ezra,  when  God  had  on 
a  large  scale  brought  back  the  captivity  of  Jacob.  It  is 
full  of  application  and  of  matter  both  for  gratulation  and 
prayer  to  every  returning  sinner. — Turn  me,  0  Grod,  and 
revive  me ;  and  hide  not  the  light  of  Thy  countenance 
from  me  any  longer.  I  pray  for  Thy  mercy  and  salvation, 
0  Grod.  And  let  me,  when  admitted  to  peace,  be  saved 
from  relapsing  into  wickedness  or  folly  ;  so  that  while  a 
peace,  which  through  Christ  is  at  one  with  the  righteous- 
ness of  God,  it  may  also  be  a  peace  which  is  not  only  at 
one  with  but  through  the  Spirit,  productive  of  my  own 
personal  righteousness.  Cause  Thy  salvation  to  be  nigh 
unto  me — even  that  salvation  which  harmonizes  Thy 
truth  with  Thy  mercy.  And  0  let  truth  be  put  into  my 
inward  parts,  that  it  may  spring  upward  and  take  a  just 
and  right  hold  of  the  righteousness  which  looketh  down 

from  heaven Verses  9  and  11  of  the  fomier,  and  verses 

10  and  11  of  the  present  psalm,  are  clearly  among  the 
highest  and  most  memorable  of  the  notanda  in  Scripture. 
— 0  do  Thou,  the  veiy  God  of  peace,  sanctify  me  wholly. 

Psalm  lxxxvi. — As  in  this  psalm,  so  frequently,  David 
begins  with  prayer  in  terms  of  dejection,  and  rises  in  the 
course  of  it  to  exultation  and  confidence.  The  petitions 
are  here  alternated  with  pleas,  grounded  sometimes  on 
himself  and  sometimes  on  God:  as  first,  that  he  is  needy; 
second,  holy  or  devoted  to  God,  whom,  therefore,  he  asks 
to  preser\^e  his  soul ;  then,  that  he  tinists  in  God ;  then, 
that  he  is  in  the  daily  habit  of  prayer ;  then,  that  he  ia 
ever  aspiring  upwardly  to  God.     The  pleas  wliieh  he 


P5ALM  Lxxxvii.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  93 

grounds  on  the  character  of  God  are  tiaily  precious. — 
Let  me  put  verse  5  among  the  highest  of  the  notanda, 
and  found  an  appropriation  on  the  plenteousness  of  God's 
mercy  to  all  who  call  upon  Him.  Let  my  soul  also  mag- 
nify God  in  the  terms  of  this  psalm  ;  and  0  may  He  unite 
my  heart,  so  as  to  fasten  it  singly  upon  Himself,  and  de- 
vote it  wholly  to  His  fear.  Verse  15,  and  first  clause  of 
verse  17,  should  he  also  enrolled  among  the  notanda — 
"Shew  me,  0  Lord,  a  token  for  good'" — a  providential 
token  if  Thou  wilt,  hut  more  especially  a  gracious  one— 
Thy  Spirit,  more  particularly,  as  the  earnest  of  my  in- 
heritance. 

Psalm  lxxxvii. — Tliis  was  quite  a  psalm  to  evoke  the 
genius  of  Horsley;  and  without  attempting  to  estimate 
his  translations  in  detail,  I  am  much  pleased  with  his 
general  view.  The  psalm  is  a  eulogy  on  Jerusalem,  on 
whose  holy  mountains  the  huildings  of  God  were  raised. 
Glorious  things  are  spoken,  and  still  more  glorious  pre- 
dicted of  the  city  of  God.  The  Gentiles  will  come  to 
know  that  this  Man — the  man  or  chief  of  ten  thousand, 
was  horn  there.  It  is  this  which  sheds  its  highest  glory 
on  Jerusalem.  This  and  that  man,  or  every  man,  shall 
say  of  Zion,  "  that  the  Messiah  was  horn  there.''  "  And 
He  shall  estahlish  her'' — this  last  prediction  heing  yet 

short  of  its  final  accomplishment The  most  important 

emendation  made  hy  Horsley  is  on  verse  6,  where,  for 
the  clause,  "  when  he  writeth  up  the  people,"  he  substi- 
tutes in  the  "  scriptures  of  the  people  ;"  that  is,  in  the 
New  Testament,  or  record  of  the  universal  faith,  circula- 
ted among  all  nations,  shall  it  he  narrated,  that  Christ 
was  born  in  Judea.     Yet  there  is  a  considerable  latitude 


94  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,      psalm  lxxxviii. 

in  all  this  interpretation :  Clirist  was  not  bom  in  Jeru- 
salem   Horsley's  treatment  of  this  psalm  reminds  me 

of  a  similar  treatment  bestowed  by  liim  on  the  18th 
chapter  of  Isaiah. — Let  me,  however,  cherish  the  reflec- 
tion, that  all  my  springs  are  in  Christ ;  and  out  of  His 
fulness,  as  from  a  fountain,  let  me  draw  all  that  can  ali- 
ment either  my  j)eace  or  holiness. 

Psalm  lxxxviil — Horsley  designates  this  psalm  "  the 
Lamentation  of  the  Messiah,''  and  Mason  Good  "  the  Com- 
plaint of  Heman  in  prison  during  the  rebellion  of  Absa- 
lom.'' It  is  throughout  an  utterance  of  deep  suffering, 
without  one  ray  of  hope  to  enliven  it,  excepting  that  the 
calling  upon  God,  as  the  "  God  of  my  salvation,"  implies 
a  hope  not  wholly  extinct  on  the  part  of  the  supplicant. 
— In  the  darkest  passages  of  my  mind  or  histor\",  let  me 

never  lose  hold  of  God  as  the  God  of  my  salvation 

"  Free  among  the  dead,"  may  mean  separated,  cast  out 
among  the  dead — as  entirely  removed  from  society  as  if 

laid  in  the  grave "  Cut  off  from  Thy  hand  " — from 

Thy  care,  or  it  may  be  by  Thy  hand.  In  the  troublous 
times  of  party  and  civil  commotion,  those  who  fomierly 
liked  might  now  abominate  us.  Who  knows  how  soon  this 
may  be  our  own  lot ! . . .  The  psalmist  prays  against  death, 
as  would  a  prisoner  in  fear  of  execution,  or  as  did  our 
Lord  when  He  said — "  If  it  be  possible  let  this  cup  pass 
from  me."  And  well  do  the  concluding  verses  apply  to 
Him  in  that  sore  and  dreadful  agony,  when  distracted 
by  the  terrors  of  the  violated  law,  and  when  the  fierce 
wrath  of  the  Lawgiver  went  over  Him ;  and  all  enhanced 
by  the  desertion  of  His  friends,  who  hid  themselves  in 
lurking-places,  and  so  kept  away  from  Him. 


PSALM  Lxxxix.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  95 

Psalm  lxxxix.  1-10. — This  is  a  very  noble  composition, 
whatever  age  may  be  assigned  to  it,  and  holds  an  ele- 
vated place  in  this  collection  of  sacred  poetry.  It  opens 
with  the  precious  conjunction  of  God's  mercy  and  God's 
faithfulness.  Both  are  built  up  and  established  in  the 
heavens  for  the  everlasting  security  of  those  who  were 
sinners,  but  have  been  redeemed.  And  the  idea  of  a 
covenant,  too — that  word  expressive  of  all  those  rights  and 
securities  which  stand  associated  with  a  contract  between 
true  and  just  and  honourable  parties — is  here  introduced 
to  our  further  confirmation.  And  it  is  well  when  the 
high  ascriptions  of  the  natural  are  mixed  with  those  of 
the  evangelic  theology — God's  wonders  in  the  heavens, 
even  the  material  heavens,  forming  an  ingredient  in  the 
anthem  of  praise,  along  with  His  faithfulness  in  the  con- 
gregation of  the  saints — His  might,  as  Ruler  of  the  na- 
tions, along  with  His  rightful  property  in  the  adorations 
and  obedience  of  the  Church — the  power  of  control  He 
has  over  the  elements  of  nature,  along  with  the  reverence 
in  which  His  name  is  held  in  every  assembly  of  the  saints. 
...  He  broke  Rahab,  or  Egypt,  in  pieces,  on  that  ever 
memorable  occasion  when  He  commanded  the  sea  to  give 
way  for  the  deliverance  of  His  people. 

11-18. — The  psalmist,  in  a  strain  of  simple  but  sublime 
eloquence,  further  dilates  on  the  power  and  sovereignty  of 
God — intermingling  the  natural  with  the  moral  attributes 
— His  might  and  majesty  in  creation  with  His  equity,  and 
clemency,  and  truth  as  the  Governor  of  men.  One  likes 
the  freedom  and  fulness  wherewith  Scripture  expatiates 
upon  the  wonders  of  the  Divinity,  both  in  His  works  and 
ways — more  especially  when  compared  with  the  narrow 
and  scholastic  representations  of  those  who  confine  them- 


96  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       psalm  lxxxix. 

selves  witliin  the  limits  of  an  artificial  and  cabalistic  or- 
thodoxy. Yet  with  all  the  descriptions  here  given,  on 
the  field  of  what  may  be  termed  natural  Theism,  there 
is  a  very  near  and  sensible  approximation  to  the  Theism 
of  the  Gospel — and  this  not  only  in  the  objective  view 
given  of  the  Deity,  as  set  forth  in  the  union  of  truth  and 
mercy,  but  in  the  subjective,  given  of  His  elect  and 
peculiar  people — as  a  people  who  know  the  joyful  sound, 
(John  X.  4;)  and  who,  believing  in  its  glad  announce- 
ments, w^alk  in  the  light  of  God's  reconciled  countenance, 
with  His  righteousness  as  their  plea,  and  His  strength 
as  their  support  for  the  work  and  warfare  of  the  new 
obedience. 

19-29. — "  Holy  One"  should,  in  the  opinion  of  many,  be 
in  the  plural.  Thou  didst  reveal  to  Thy  saints  that  Thou 
hadst  "  laid  help  on  One  who  is  mighty.''  This  was  made 
known  to  Samuel  in  reference  to  David ;  but  obviously  a 
greater  than  David  is  here — even  He  who  is  not  only  the 
offspring,  but  the  root  of  Jesse — the  Anointed  One — 
the  Messiah.  God's  faithfulness  and  mercy  met  with 
Him  in  the  work  of  our  Redemption  ;  and  who  does  not 
see  that  the  description  expands  greatly  beyond  the 
monarchy  and  duration  of  the  literal  David — in  that  not 
only  was  His  hand  set  in  the  sea,  and  His  right  hand  in 
the  rivers,  but  in  that  His  seed  is  to  endure  for  ever, 
and  His  throne  as  the  days  of  heaven.  There  is  nothing 
incompatible  with  this  in  that  He  sent  forth  cries  and 
supplications — which  He  did  in  those  days  of  humiliation 
which  ushered  in  the  glorious  days  of  His  exaltation  and 
everlasting  triumph.  God's  mercy  is  kept  for  Him  CA^er- 
more,  in  that  He  is  the  Dispenser  thereof  to  His  own 
people,  whom  He  redeemed  by  His  blood,  and  of  whose 


PSALM  tixxix.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  97 

grateful  acknowledgments  and  songs  He  will  be  tlie 
tlieme  througliout  all  eternity. — Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  take 
hold  of  that  covenant  which  standeth  for  ever  fast.  I  do 
not  sufficiently  look  at  the  way  of  salvation  in  the  aspect 
of  a  covenant. 

30-37. — There  seems  to  be  a  twofold  instruction  in 
this  passage.  ^Ye  are  told  first  of  God's  procedure  with 
the  Jews  nationally,  who  had  often  rebelled  against  Him, 
and  been  punished  accordingly — yet  who,  in  spite  of  their 
manifold  provocations,  w^ere  not  only  often  recalled  when 
their  season  of  penitence  or  prayer  came  round,  but  who 
will  at  length,  after  their  present  long  dispersion  and 
infidelity,  be  restored  to  their  ovm  land,  and  the  promises 
made  to  David  and  his  seed  will  have  their  ample  fulfil- 
ment. But  we  are  not  only  told  in  these  verses  of  what 
He  did  and  is  doing  to  the  nation  of  Israel  historically ; 
we  are  further  instmcted  in  the  methods  of  His  discip- 
linary administration  individually,  with  His  people  of  all 
countries  and  all  ages.  They  too  sin — but  not  the  sin 
unto  death.  They  too  have  their  spots — but  still  they  are 
the  spots  of  Grod's  children.  They,  too,  at  times  break 
the  statutes,  and  fall  away  from  the  commandments,  and 
are  visited  because  of  it  with  chastisements  from  the  hand 
of  God ;  yet  they  are  not  cast  out  of  the  covenant — if 
indeed  the  children  of  God  by  faith  in  Christ  Jesus.  We 
doubt  not  that  when  it  is  said — "'I  will  not  take  my 
mercy  from  Him,"  there  is  a  reference  to  Christ.  I 
shall  not  take  my  mercy  from  Him — that  is,  from 
His  real  disciples ;  for  thereby  I  should  be  breaking  my 
covenant  with  David,  or  with  David's  Son,  to  whom  I 
will  not  lie.  He  will  not  cast  off  utterly  His  emng  chil- 
dren, nor  fall  from  the  faithfulness  of  the  promise— that 

VOL.  III.  E 


D8  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xc. 

He  will  perfect  the  good  work  wliicli  He  had  begun  in 
their  souls. 

38-52. — Tlie  psalmist  now  remonstrates  with  God,  and 
complains  of  the  degraded  and  oppressed  condition  of 
Israel,  notwithstanding  of  these  magnificent  predictions 
and  promises.  Mason  Good  fixes  the  date  of  this  psalm 
in  the  reign  of  Rehoboam,  but  Horsley  at  the  death  of 
Josiah.  Certain  it  is  that  Judea  was  often  in  the  cir- 
cumstances set  forth  in  this  passage,  when  the  croAvn  was 
profaned,  and  the  throne  cast  to  the  ground.  Horsley 
and  others  devise  certain  parts  by  different  speakers,  to 
account  for  the  sudden  changes  of  subject  and  sentiment 
which  often  take  place  among  verses  that  lie  contiguous, 
as  in  vei-se  47,  where  the  supplicant  is  conceived  to  be 
pleading  with  God ;  and  verse  48,  which  is  understood  to 
be  the  reply  given  from  above — after  which  the  expostu- 
lation is  resumed,  and,  among  other  arguments,  it  is  alleged 
that  the  ser\^ants  of  the  Lord,  and  more  especially  the 
composer  of  the  psalm  himself,  has  to  bear  the  reproach 
of  their  powerful  and  "\dctorious  enemies.  The  Church  is 
often  in  similar  circumstances,  and  may  be  held  as  the 
true  antitype  of  this  complaint — trodden  under  foot  by 
power,  and  calumniated  by  her  adversaries  ;  yet  a  day  of 
final  triumph  will  at  length  arrive  ;  and  therefore  may  the 
last  verse  of  this  glorious  psalm  vrell  be  one  of  blessing 
and  gratulation. 

Psalm  xc. — There  is  a  great  weight  of  opinion  on  the 
side  of  this  being  the  earliest  of  the  psalms,  and  the  pro- 
duction of  Moses  on  his  being  asked  (Numb.  xxi.  7)  to 
pray  for  the  people  when  bitten  with  serpents.  It  is 
thought  that  at  this  time;  too,  the  life  of  man  was  short- 


PSALM  xci.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READIiNGS.  09 

ened  down"  to  seventy  years,  though  there  were  a  few  ex- 
ceptions then  that  went  greatly  beyond  this.  It  is  one  of 
the  most  memorable  and  most  familiar  of  our  psalms. 
How  magnificent  the  outset  description  of  God's  eternity, 
and  of  the  soA^ereignty  in  which  He  is  throned.  St.  Peter 
seems  to  allude  to  verse  4  in  2  Pet.  iii.  8.  How  affecting 
the  rise  and  disappearance  of  man's  puny  generations, 
although  the  destructions  of  a  fatal  plague  seem  to  be 
adverted  to  in  this  place,  when  God  visited  the  people  in 

His  anger,  and  cut  oif  thousands  in  Israel Verse  12 

ranks  high  amongst  the  notanda  of  sacred  writ.  The 
psalm,  though  occasional,  is  also  of  general  and  enduring 
application. — Let  me  reiterate  its  closing  prayers.  Satisfy 
me,  0  God,  with  a  view  of  Thy  mercy,  with  the  accom- 
plishment of  Thine  owti  work  upon  me,  and  with  such  an 
establishment  of  mine  own  work  as  to  prove  that  it  has 
been  done  in  the  Lord,  and  not  done  in  vain.  Let  us  not 
think  lightly  of  God's  ^^Tath — (verse  11) — ^we  cannot  fear 
it  too  much :  it  is  truly  as  great  or  greater  than  we  ap- 
prehend. 

Psalm  xci. — Said  by  Mason  Good  to  be  a  psalm  of  Moses, 
and  entituled  by  Horsley — "  God's  love  to  the  Messiah,"  and 
divided  by  him  into  parts.  A  most  precious  composition. 
...  He  that  taketh  refuge  hideth  himself  in  God — shall  be 
sheltered  by  Him  from  all  evil. — Let  me  hide  myself  in 
the  pavilion  of  Thy  residence  till  all  calamities  be  over- 
past. God  is  my  helper,  and  I  will  not  fear  what  man 
can  do  unto  me.  No  external  violence  will  come  near 
thee,  so  as  to  land  in  a  final  overthrow.  Tlie  great  lesson 
is  the  sure  help  and  protection  by  God  of  all  who  trust  in 
Him.     Satan  tried  to  turn  one  of  the  expressions  here,  so 


100  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalji  xcii. 

as  that  our  Saviour  might  be  led,  instead  of  tmsting  God, 
to  tempt  Him.  The  calamities  against  which  God  stands 
pledged  to  defend  us  are  those  which  beset  us,  not  those 
which  we  ourselves  rush  upon. — Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  set 
my  love  upon  Thyself ;  and  let  me  gloiy  only  in  this — 
that  I  understand  and  know  God.  Shew  me  Thy  salva- 
tion. May  I  know  the  gift  of  God,  or  the  things  freely 
given  to  me  of  God ;  and  then  in  the  train  of  my  confi- 
dence will  come  affection  for  my  Father  in  heaven. 

Psalm  xcii. — These  are  very  fine  devotional  verses 
wherewith  this  psalm  opens.  Let  me  not  underv^alue  in- 
strumental music  in  Church,  when  I  find  that  here  it  is 
called  in  to  give  utterance  and  eflect  to  such  sentiments 
as  are  breathed  forth  in  this  ode.  Mark  the  contrast  here 
made  between  the  works  of  God  and  His  thoughts :  His 
works  are  great,  patently  so  even  to  sight,  and  brought 
within  our  ken  by  the  palpable  revelations  of  astronomy. 
But  how  deep  withal  are  His  thoughts — hoAv  inscmtable 
to  us  is  the  policy  of  the  Divine  government,  and  how 
profound  the  enigma  which  rests  upon  His  ways,  and 
upon  His  end  in  the  creation  of  all  things  !  Men  immured 
— we  might  say  imbruted — in  the  strongholds  of  sense 
and  matter,  have  no  perception  of  this ;  but  in  the  final 
development  of  things,  when  the  destmction  of  sinners 
comes  to  pass,  it  will  be  foimd  how  vain  and  ephemeral 
their  security  is.  God  will  endure  for  evermore,  and  His 
pui-poses  will  all  be  accomplished  in  the  ruin  of  the  wicked 
and  triumph  of  the  righteous.  Note  their  flourishing  in 
verse  12  as  count ei-part  to  that  of  the  wicked  in  verse  7. 
Horsley  makes  the  righteous  here  to  be  the  righteous  One. 
' — My  God,  let  mine,  if  it  be  Thy  blessed  will,  be  a  fruitful 


PSALM  xciv.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  101 

old  age.     Let  me  flourish  permanently,  and  for  ever . . . 
God's  faithfulness  appears  in  the  fulfilment  of  His  pro- 
mises to  the  righteous.     (Psalm  xviii.  25.) 

Psalm  xciil — It  is  fortunate,  amid  the  conflicting  theo- 
ries in  regard  to  the  occasions  of  different  psalms,  that  the 
spirit  and  sentiment  are  so  clear  and  applicahle  to  the  state 
of  the  Church  in  all  ages.  Verse  1  is  like  Psalm  xcvi.  10. 
Altogether  this  is  a  most  stirring  and  impressive  compo- 
sition— a  psalm  of  lofty  adoration,  and  wherein  the  great- 
ness and  the  sovereignty,  and  the  high  state  of  the  Eternal 

King  are  most  powerfully  set  forth The  tumults  of 

the  people,  and  strength  of  warring  elements,  are  here 
represented  as  under  the  absolute  control  and  check  of 
Him  whose  power  and  dominion  are  from  everlasting. 
What  a  noble  description  is  here  placed  before  us  of  the 
Lord  on  high,  and  who  "  is  mightier  than  the  noise  of 
many  waters ! ''  Yet,  with  all  the  magnificence  of  His 
natural  attributes  here  done  homage  to,  the  great  moral 
characteristics  of  the  Divinity  are  not  overlooked — His 
truth  and  His  holiness. — AVhile  I  rejoice,  0  Lord,  in  the 
testimony  of  my  acceptance  through  Christ,  let  me  never 
forget  that  the  fellowship  to  which  I  am  thereby  admitted 
is  a  sacred  fellowship — a  fellowship  with  a  God  who  lor- 
eth  righteousness,  and  hateth  iniquity. 

Psalm  xciv.  1-11. — This  psalm  is  referred  by  Masoi 
Good  to  the  period  of  Absalom,  but  receives  at  the  hands 
of  Horsley  a  spiritual  and  higher  application.  It  seem  > 
the  prayer  of  a  man  beset  by  proud  and  powerful  enemies. 
. . .  The  sentiment  of  verse  1  is  the  same  with  that  of  Rom. 
xii.  19,  in  as  far  as  the  ascription  to  God  is  concerned; 


102  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xciv. 

but  tlie  lesson  given  to  man  in  the  later  Scripture  is  of  a 
liio'lier  and  more  advanced  cast  of  momlitv  than  we  find 
exemplified  even  by  the  inspired  writers  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament. This  complaint  may  have  been  directed  either 
against  rebels,  or  against  iniquitous  judges,  Avith  both  of 
whom  David  was  abundantly  exercised.  They  had  cast 
ofi*  the  fear  of  God,  and  even  denied  His  omniscience. 
The  argument  that  is  brought  against  this  infidelity 
of  theirs,  deserves  a  high  place  among  the  notanda  of 
Scripture — an  argument  grounded  on  the  faculties  of  man's 
percipient  and  intellectual  nature,  and  concluding  for  the 
like  faculties  in  the  God  who  has  thus  furnished  and 
endowed  us.  A  powerful  consideration  truly,  and  on 
which — reasoning  from  the  superiority  of  the  Creator  to 
the  creature — we  might  infer  that  God  not  only  knoweth 
as  man  does,  but  knoweth  the  thoughts  of  man,  that  they 
are  vanity. 

12-23. — The  sentiment  of  Heb.  xii.  6,  &c.,  is  here  given 
forth  as  in  other  places  of  Scripture.  It  is  in  seasons  of 
chastisement  that  righteousness  seems  as  if  forsaken  by 
God ;  for  these,  too,  may  be  seasons  of  triumph  for  the 
wicked.  But  the  just  will  at  length  be  prepared  for  them, 
and  then  judgment  will  return  to  the  open  manifestation 
of  itself  as  being  on  the  side  of  the  good,  and  against  the 
evil.  God  does  not  cast  ofi"  utterly,  which  encourages  the 
psalmist  to  ask  who  will  rise  up  for  him  against  the 
wicked,  when  he  comforts  himself  in  God,  and  proclaims 
the  support  and  consolation  which  He  had  vouchsafed  to 

him Verses  18-20  are  all  three  specially  noticeable ;  and 

19  deserves  to  be  enshrined  among  the  highest  of  our 
Bible  notanda. — My  God,  at  any  time  when  like  to  slip,  do 
Thou  hold  me  up ;  and  at  all  times  may  Thy  consolations 


PSALM  xcv.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  103 


delight  my  soul.  And  forgive,  0  Lord,  tliat  multitude 
of  disquieting  thoughts  by  which  I  so  often  vex  myself 
in  vain.  There  is  sin  in  such  thoughts,  as  prompted  by 
and  tending  to  those  anxieties  which  are  expressly  for- 
bidden by  Him  who  tells  us  to  "  be  careful  for  nothing.". . . 
The  expression  of  "  framing  mischief  by  a  law,''  is  a  tmly 
memorable  one,  and  singularly  applicable  to  the  conduct 
of  those  persecuting  governments  that  would  either  en- 
force the  decisions  of  a  tyrannical,  or  give  forth  their  per- 
secuting edicts  against  the  liberties  of  an  evangelical 
Church. 

Psalm  xcv. — Xow  follows  a  succession  of  most  savoury 
and  heart-inspiring  psalms — full  of  thanksgiving,  and  of 
affectionate  as  well  as  sublime  and  elevating  piety — 
mingling  joy,  because  of  God's  goodness,  with  the  loftiest 
ascriptions  to  Him  of  greatness  and  sovereignty.  He  is 
both  the  Rock  of  Salvation  and  the  Monarch  of  Heaven 
and  Earth.  These  appeals  to  His  works  confer  a  sanction 
on  our  study  of  them  ;  and  in  the  wonders  both  of  geology 
and  astronomy,  we  should  recognise  the  mighty  power  of 
Him  who  sits  enthroned  in  the  midst  of  all  those  glories 
by  which  He  is  suiTOunded.  Let  us  behold  Him  in  the 
earth  and  sea,  and  all  the  variety  and  magnificence  of 
Creation  ;  but  let  us  not  be  satisfied  with  the  theology  of 
external  nature,  and  charge  ourselves,  moreover,  with  the 
obligations  and  lessons  which  are  carried  home  by  the 
theology  of  conscience.  Against  these  let  us  no  longer 
harden  our  hearts.  "  To-day  let  us  hear  His  voice,''  and 
commit  ourselves  both  to  His  guidance  as  our  Shepherd, 
and  His  grace  as  our  Sanctifier. — Do  Thou  both  direct  and 
sustain  us,  0  God.     Feed  our  souls,  so  that  they  may  be 


104  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xcv.i. 

nourished  into  a  maturity  and  a  meetness  for  the  everlast- 
ing fold  in  the  Paradise  above. 

Psalm  xcvi. — The  spirit  of  the  last  psalm  is  fullj  sus- 
tained, nav,  elevated  in  this.  We  have  direct,  and  not 
merely  conjectural  evidence  for  so  many  of  these  compo- 
sitions having  been  framed  on  the  occasion  of  great 
solemnities  and  ser\4ce-days.  "We  find  a  great  part  of 
this  psalm  in  1  Chron.  xvi.  23-33,  delivered  by  David  into 
the  hand  of  Asaph  and  his  brethren  on  the  day  that  the 
Ark  of  the  Lord's  Covenant  came  out  of  the  house  of 
Obed-edom.     Some  part  of  this  psalm  will  be  also  found 

in  Psalm  xxix.  1,2 Verse  4  is  a  notandum.     What  a 

tribute  to  astronomy  in  that  the  Lord  is  so  often  done 
liomage  to  as  having  made  the  heavens !  Let  the  theology 
of  nature  be  blended  with  the  theology  of  conscience — a 
full  recognition  of  the  strength  and  the  glory  which  shine 
palpably  forth  in  the  wonders  of  Creation,  with  the  spiri- 
tual offerings  of  holy  worship  and  holy  seiwice.  We  are 
called  upon  to  be  joyful  because  God  cometh  in  judg 
ment.  It  will  be  a  day  of  teiTor  to  the  wicked,  but  of 
triumph  and  establishment  to  the  righteous — when  the 
new  heaven  and  the  new  earth  shall  emerge  from  the 
wrecks  of  an  older  economy. — On  that  day  may  we  be 
counted  worthy  to  stand  before  the  Son  of  Man.  May  we 
lift  up  our  heads  because  our  redemption  draweth  nigh. 
On  this  last  day  of  the  year,  may  I  be  impressed  with  the 
evanescence  of  things  present,  and  look  onward  to  "  the 
city  that  hath  foundations.'^ 

January,  1846. 

Psalm  xcvil — This  psalm,  too,  is  in  a  similar  strain 
of  high  gratulation  and  praise.     The  earth  is  called  on  to 


PSALM  xcviii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  105 

rejoice  because  the  Lord  reigneth ;  and  well  it  may,  on 
tlie  day  of  its  enlargement  and  final  emancipation  from 
evil,  which  seems  to  be  here  set  forth — aday  of  judgment, 
and  so  also  a  day  of  terror  and  destruction  to  the  enemies 
of  God  and  goodness — a  day  when  at  His  presence  "  the 
elements  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat ;''  but  his  own  right- 
eousness and  glory  shall  be  manifested  in  the  sight  of 
all  people.  Then  will  the  worldly,  who  serv^e  idols  in 
loving  the  creature  more  than  the  Creator,  be  confounded 
and  overt hro^^^l ;  but  then,  too,  will  the  righteous  lift  uj) 
their  heads  and  rejoice  because  of  God's  judgments  — 
Verses  11  and  12  are  both  most  savoury  and  precious 
notanda. — Give  me  to  experience,  0  Lord,  those  revela- 
tions which  follow  in  the  train  of  obedience;  and  0  that 
I  felt  the  charm  and  enjoyment  of  holiness,  so  as  to  give 
thanks,  in  the  reflection  that  with  a  holy  God  holiness  is 
an  indispensable  requisite  for  our  appearing  in  His  pre- 
sence. We  should  further,  and  be  grateful  because  of  this 
essential  attribute  in  the  Godhead ;  for  it  is  in  virtue  of 
His  holiness  that  evil  cannot  dwell  with  Him,  and  that  the 
world  will  at  length  be  delivered,  and  this  conclusively, 
from  the  wickedness  and  malice  and  vile  sensualities  by 
which  it  is  now  so  disquieted  and  deformed. — Hasten  this 

consummation,    0  Lord The   evolutions  of  prophecy 

seem  to  be  thickening  around  us  ;  and  at  the  commence- 
ment of  1846,  it  may  be  well  to  notice,  that  interpreters, 
though  they  may  be  wrong,  have  many  of  them  fixed  on 
1847  as  the  era  of  a  great  crisis. 

Psalm  xcviii. — A  noble,  spirit-stimng  psalm.  It  may 
have  been  written  on  the  occasion  of  a  great  national 
triumph  at  the  time;  but  may,  perhaps,  afterwards  be 

e2 


106  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  xcix. 

taken  up  at  the  period  of  the  great  millennial  restoratiou 
of  all  things.  The  victory  here  celehrated  may  be  in 
prophetic  vision,  and  that  at  Armageddon.  Then  will 
salvation  and  righteousness  be  openly  manifested  in  the 
sight  of  the  hostile  nations.  Israel  will  be  exalted  ;  and 
the  blessed  conjunction  of  mercy  and  truth  will  gladden 
and  assure  the  hearts  of  all  who  at  that  time  are  Israel- 
ites indeed.  Godliness  will  form  the  reigning  character- 
istic of  the  whole  earth These  appeals  to  nature  in  her 

great  departments — of  the  sea  in  its  mighty  amplitude, 
and  the  earth  with  its  floods  and  hills — form,  not  a  war- 
rant, but  a  call  on  Christian  ministers  to  recognise  Grod 
more  in  their  prayers  and  sermons  as  the  God  of  Creation, 
instead  of  restricting  themselves  so  exclusively  to  the 
peculiar  doctrines  of  Christianity.  Do  the  one,  and  not 
leave  the  other  undone. 

Psalm  xcix. — In  Psalm  xcvii.,  because  the  Lord  reigneth 
the  earth  was  bidden  to  rejoice;  but  here,  because  "the 
Lord  reigneth''  the  people  are  bidden  to  tremble,  and  the 
earth  to  be  moved.  And  there  are  many  who,  on  the  day 
of  the  establishment  of  God's  kingdom  in  the  world,  will 
be  cast  into  the  pit  of  destruction.  But  the  subject  of 
this  psalm  seems  to  be  more  exclusively  Jewish,  as  de- 
scribing God's  place  in  the  Temple  and  His  supremacy  in 
Zion,  whence,  however,  he  ruleth  with  a  high  hand  over 
all  nations.  Thrice  is  God's  holiness  here  spoken  of; 
and  thrice  are  we  called,  on  account  of  it,  to  exalt  and 
hold  Him  in  highest  reverence.  And  though  strong,  He 
is  also  just  and  righteous  in  all  His  ways.  His  is  not  a 
strength  put  forth  on  arbitrary  acts  of  mere  pleasure.  All 
His  dealings  and  intercourse  with  His  people  through 


PSALM  c.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  107 

their  heads  and  representatives,  were  in  perfect  equity 
and  rightncss — so  that  either  He  uj^held  them  against 
their  enemies,  and  was  the  avenger  of  their  wrongs  ;  or  if 
thej  erred  from  His  ways,  although  He  forgave  them,  yet 
did  He  chastise  them  for  their  waywardness  and  their 
wanderings. — 0  may  I  never  be  cast  off  from  Thy  paternal 
regards,  even  though  I  should  offend  and  suffer  because 
of  it. 

Psalm  c. — This  is  one  of  our  highest  psalms,  and  per- 
haps the  most  frequently  sung  of  any  in  our  churches.  It 
may  have  been  also  a  great  church  psalm  in  Judea,  and 
sung  at  their  festivals.  It  is  a  psalm  of  high  gratulation 
and  gladness. — 0  may  I  catch  its  inspiration,  and  know 
what  it  is  to  delight  myself  greatly  in  God — not  relin- 
quishing prayer,  but  rising  often  above  it  to  the  higher 
platform  of  praise.  TVliat  a  warrant,  not  for  music  only, 
but  for  joyful  music  in  our  sacred  services  ;  and  especially 
in  these  days  of  brighter  revelation,  when  encouraged  to 
joy  in  God  through  Him  by  whom  we  have  received  the 
Atonement.  There  is  a  call  upon  all  lands  to  join  in  this 
celebration ;  and  on  this  week,  set  apart  for  prayer  in  be- 
half of  Christianity  at  large,  let  our  desires  and  our  sym- 
pathies go  abroad  over  the  face  of  the  earth  —  What  a 
simple,  yet  stupendous  truth,  that  "  the  Lord  is  God  ! " 
and  what  a  weight  in  the  sentiment,  easily  uttered,  but 
never  adequately  felt,  that  "  He  made  us,  and  not  we  our- 
selves.'' Horsley  translates  it — "  He  made  us,  and  His  are 
we.'' — 0  that  I  felt  as  I  ought  the  dependence  and  sub- 
mission which  this  impressive  consideration  should  carry 
along  Avith  it.  Elevate  me,  0  God,  to  the  faculty  of  bene- 
diction and  praise ;  and  while  I  rejoice  in  Thy  goodness, 


108  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  en. 

let  my  heart  be  also  staid  upon  Thy  truth — blessed  at- 
tributes^ in  the  conjunction  of  which  lies  the  essence  of 
the  Gospel  salvation. 

Psalm  ci. — This,  apart  from  the  title,  has  the  strongest 
internal  evidence  of  its  being  a  psalm  of  David's — as  his 
resolution  to  promote  the  faithful  of  the  land,  and  keep 
the  wicked  aloof  from  his  presence  ;  and  to  punish  all  those 
evil-doers  w^ho  would  disturb  the  city  of  the  Lord,  Avhich 
is  Jerusalem.  But  though  the  composition  of  a  king,  and 
specially  expressive  of  his  purposes  as  such,  it  breathes 
the  spirit  and  sentiments  which  are  proper  to  OA^ery  indi- 
vidual servant  of  God. — Let  me  sing  of  mercy  and  judg- 
ment— that  precious  conjunction  of  perpetual  recurrence 
in  the  Psalms.  Let  me  behave  wisely,  both  to  them  who 
are  without,  and  more  especially  to  those  of  my  own 
household.  And,  0  Lord,  keep  all  wickedness,  and  more 
particularly  such  as  is  fitted  to  tempt  and  to  inflame, 
away  not  from  my  eyes  only,  but  from  the  thoughts  and 
imaginations  of  my  heart.  Frowardness  is  one  of  my 
besetting  sins  ;  by  which  I  undei^tand  from-iuardness — 
giving  way  to  sudden  impulses  of  anger,  or  quick  concep- 
tion, and  casting  it  foi*th  in  words  or  deeds  of  impetuous 
violence. 

Psalm  cil  1-11. — Now  follows  a  succession  of  psalms, 
the  familiars  and  favourites  of  our  churches,  and  replete 
with  the  best  and  richest  material  for  devotional  exercises. 
. . .  This  psalm  is  conceived  by  Mason  Good  to  have  been 
composed  on  the  occasion  of  the  hostile  edict  which  put  a 
stop  for  a  time  to  the  building  of  the  second  Temple, 
after  the  return  of  the  Jews  from  the  Babylonish  Captivity ; 


PSALM  cii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  109 

and  appropriately  counterpart  to  tliis,  it  is  entitled  by 
Horsley — the  Prayer  and  Lamentation  of  a  Believer  in  the 
time  of  the  last  antichristian  persecution.  The  psalm  it- 
self is  in  keeping  with  both  of  these  hypotheses  ;  and  on 
the  principle  of  type  arid  antitype,  both  may  be  true. 
The  passage  immediately  before  us  is  one  of  deep  distress, 
and  of  importunate  prayer  to  God  for  enlargement  from 
it.  Who  knows  but  that  it  may  soon  be  the  complaint  and 
utterance  of  the  Christian  Church,  as  it  may  have  been  at 
one  time  of  the  personified  Jerusalem?  The  "  lifting  wp" 
and  the  "  casting  down''  tally  well  with  the  history  in 
Ezra ;  and  we,  now  lifted  up  because  of  popular  support 
and  favour,  may  yet  be  cast  down  by  iiTeligion  and  infi- 
delity in  power. — Prepare  us,  0  Lord,  for  the  whole  of 
Thy  blessed  will — merciful  though  mysterious  God. 

12-28. — The  complainer  now  turns  him  to  God,  and 
rises  to  the  language  of  hope.  There  was  enlargement 
granted  to  the  Jews ;  and  let  us  look  for  a  similar  en- 
largement. There  is  a  set  time  in  the  counsels  of  God 
for  the  establishment  and  final  triumph  of  the  Gos- 
pel upon  earth ;  but  it  looks  as  if  it  would  be  pre- 
ceded by  the  oppression  and  distress  of  a  sufi'ering 
Church.  But  let  us  take  comfort  in  what  is  written 
here — written,  doubtless,  for  our  admonition,  on  whom 
the  latter  ends  of  the  world  have  come.  God  will  at 
length  release  His  prisoners  ;  and  the  great  victoiy  of 
truth  and  righteousness  will  be  achieved  at  Jerusalem 
over  the  assembled  hosts  and  powers  of  this  world.  The 
complaint,  however,  is  again  resumed ;  for  ere  the  ulti- 
mate deliverance  comes,  the  trial  of  the  Church  will  form 
a  stage  in  the  process.  Its  strength  will  be  weakened  in 
the  way,  and  its  days  of  prosperity  will  be  made  to  cease 


110  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cm. 

for  a  time.  But  amid  these  fluctuations  and  frailties  be- 
low, how  cheering  to  think  that  we  are  in  the  hands  of 
the  everlasting,  and  withal,  wise  and  righteous  and  merci- 
ful God  !  And  oh,  how  precious  to  know,  from  the  appli- 
cation made  by  the  Apostle  in  Heb.  i.,  of  these  concluding 
verses,  that  Christ  is  Grod,  and  that  it  is  He  who  is  here 
spoken  of — ^the  same  to-day,  yesterday,  and  for  ever. 
By  Him  the  heavens  were  created,  and  the  foundations 
of  the  world  were  laid.  He  will  deliver  and  exalt  His 
Church.  All  the  kingdoms  of  the  earth  shall  perish  ;  and 
this  to  make  way  for  His  own  everlasting  kingdom,  when 
power  will  be  given  to  His  saints,  and  they  will  be  esta- 
blished for  evermore. 

Psalm  cm.  1-11. — A  truly  precious  composition  ; — and 
enlarge  me,  0  Grod,  into  a  full  sympathy  and  participation 
with  all  its  utterances.  I  pray  for  my  ascent  into  the 
higher  region  of  praise ;  and  that  Thou,  0  God,  mayest 
be  the  object  of  my  heart-benedictions,  as  well  as  of  my 
supplications  and  requests.  Let  me  stir  up  all  that  is 
within  me — and  so  consecrate  every  faculty  and  feeling 
to  the  exaltation  of  God.  Thou  hast  laden  me  with  in- 
numerable benefits  ;  and  enabled  me  to  say  with  unfalter- 
ing faith — Thou  hast  forgiven  all  mine  iniquities  !  And 
do  Thou  not  only  forgive,  but  heal,  with  spiritual  health 
in  my  soul.  How  responsible  I  am  for  the  vigour  of  my 
old  age  ! . . .  There  is  a  view  taken  here  of  God's  goodness  to 
Israel ;  and  much  is  to  be  gathered  from  His  forbearance 
and  favour  to  that  wayward  and  stiffnecked  people.  Well 
may  it  be  said  of  Him  on  this  re^dew,  that  He  is  merciful 
and  gracious,  and  slow  to  anger,  and  easy  to  be  entreated. 
Truly  He  dealt  not  with  them  nor  with  me,  according  to 


PSALM  CIV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  Ill 

their  sins.  So  liigli  is  His  mercy,  even  high  as  the  heavens 
above  the  earth — to  them  that  return  and  repent  in  fear. 
12-22. — My  God,  let  my  sins  be  as  if  cast  into  the 
bottom  of  the  sea,  or  carried  to  a  land  that  is  not  in- 
habited, and  where  no  more  mention  is  made  of  them. 
How  endearing  the  representations  here  given  of  Thy 
fatherly  compassion  !  And  how  fine  the  contrast  between 
the  ephemeral  frailty  of  man  and  the  enduring  mercy  of 
God !  All  that  is  in  us  is  fugitive  and  precarious ;  but 
that  in  God  which  there  is  to  make  up  the  defect  of  the 
creature  is  stable  and  everlasting,  and  firmly  to  be  de- 
pended on. — Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  keep  Thy  covenant  and 
do  Thy  commandments.  What  a  noble  representation  of 
the  Divine  sovereignty — "His  kingdom  ruleth  over  all  I" 
— not  the  seat  of  His  authority,  but  the  authority  itself: 
Thy  kingly  power  ruleth  over  all. — Let  me  be  elevated  as 
I  should  by  the  magnificent  closing  'summons  to  the  higher 
orders  of  being,  and  the  creation  in  general.  Give  me  to 
feel  the  intimacy  of  my  own  personal  dependence  on  God 
for  all  that  relates  to  myself ;  but  give  me  at  the  same 
time  to  expand  in  the  contemplation  of  all  that  the  Al- 
mighty hath  created.  Surely  there  is  nothing  created  by 
Him  unworthy  of  my  regard. 

Psalm  civ.  1-9.' — This  psalm  begins  as  the  former,  but 
on  a  different  subject — the  last  being  addressed  to  God, 
as  sitting  on  the  throne  of  grace ;  the  present  to  God,  as 
sitting  on  the  throne  of  nature  and  of  creation  ; — and  never 
have  the  works  of  God,  and  His  sovereignty  over  them, 
been  so  magnificently  set  forth.  The  glory  of  the  Divi- 
nity is  in  this  made  more  palpable,  through  the  medium 
of  the  senses — whereas  in  the  former,  it  is  beheld  by  the 


112  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  civ. 

eve  of  faith.  God  in  Himself  is  clothed  with  honour  and 
majesty;  hut  His  "covering  with  light/'  in  verse  2,  seems 
the  first  forth-putting  of  His  creative  power,  as  in  Genesis, 
when  He  said — "  Let  there  he  lioiit,  and  there  was  lio-ht.'" 
It  prohahly  means  His  first  investiture  of  the  field  of 
creation  with  light.  The  psalmist  contemplates  nature 
as  it  appears  to  the  eye,  and  so  figures  the  sky  to  he  a 
canopy,  and  the  dome  of  the  heavens  to  be  resting  around 
the  horizon  on  pillars  or  beams  placed  in  the  waters  of  a 
great  circumambient  sea.  And  then  how  august  the  re- 
presentation of  the  clouds  being  the  chariot  of  God,  and 
of  His  walking  '•  on  the  wings  of  the  wind  ! "  As  he  in 
this  passage  is  describing  the  material  framework,  there 
is  not  probably  any  allusion  here  to  angels  or  spirits  ;  and 
Campbell's  translation  seems  the  sound  one — "who  maketh 
the  winds  His  messengers,  and  the  flaming  fire  His  ser- 
vant.". . .  There  is  obviously  here  a  description  of  the  flood, 
and  of  its  retirement  fi'om  the  face  of  the  earth — when  at 
the  bidding  of  the  Lord  the  waters  from  up  the  moun- 
tains, and  down  along  the  valleys,  found  their  way  to  the 
place  He  had  assigned  for  them. 

10-23. — Then  follows  a  descriptive  sketch  of  the  world 
now  emerged  from  the  flood,  and  its  inhabitants.  Though 
it  were  but  a  Flemish  picture,  yet,  as  being  a  just  and 
ti-ue  representation  of  nature,  though  it  be  more  than 
this,  it  could  not  fail  to  be  beautiful — as  when  it  is  said, 
that  by  the  sides  of  the  rivers  which  nm  down  the  valleys, 
the  fowls  of  heaven  sing  among  the  branches  of  the  trees 
which  skirt  their  banks.  The  water  is  here  conceived  to 
come  down  from  the  chambers  of  the  sky,  which  now  dis- 
poses me  to  think  that  the  "  chambers"  of  verse  3  may  be 
figured  to  have  had  their  beams  laid  in  the  waters  above 


PSALM  CIV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  113 

the  firmament,  and  not  under  it.  (Gen.  i.  7.) . . .  The  trees 
of  the  Lord  may  be  so  named  from  their  size  and  stature 
— this  name  being  used  as  a  superlative  in  the  Hebrew, 
or  to  denote  aught  Avhich  is  great  and  extraordinary. 
It  is  a  fine  conclusion  or  climax  to  this  description,  after 
having  set  forth  the  vegetable  creation,  and  its  subser- 
vience to  the  animals  whose  habits  are  here  pourtrayed, 
to  finish  ofi"  with  man  going  forth  to  his  labour  through 
the  day,  and  returning  in  the  evening  to  his  rest. 

24-35. — The  manifold  works,  all  made  in  wisdom,  attest 
what  the  Apostle  (Eph.  iii.  10)  calls  the  manifold  wisdom 
of  Grod.  These  contemplations  of  nature  by  an  inspired 
writer,  should  expand  our  theology,  and  lead  us  to  contem- 
plate God  in  the  wonders  and  works  of  Creation,  as  well  as 
in  the  economy  of  grace. — Let  us  participate  more  in  this 
relish  of  the  psalmist  for  the  beauties  and  characteristics 
of  the  grand  visible  panorama  around  us,  consisting  of 
the  earth  in  the  fulness  of  its  riches,  and  of  the  sea,  en- 
livened by  shipping,  and  peopled  with  a  zoology  of  its 
own.  How  stately  a  representation  is  here  given  of  the 
universal  dependence  throughout  the  universe  on  the 
universal  Parent  and  sustainer  of  all  its  generations  and 
tribes ;  and  how  well  to  look  upward,  from  the  glorious 
spectacle  before  our  eyes,  to  Him  who  made  all,  and  who 
upholds  all ! — Give  us  to  recognise  Thee,  0  Lord,  in  all 
the  vicissitudes  which  take  place  on  the  surface  of  our 
globe — in  the  succession  of  the  seasons,  and  in  the  disap- 
pearance as  well  as  renewal  of  one  generation  after  an- 
other. Wliy  should  the  God,  from  whose  wondrous  mind 
there  have  emanated  all  the  greatness  and  variety  of  this 
vast  and  voluminous  world — why  should  He  be  a  weari- 
ness unto  us,  or  as  a  land  not  inhabited  ?   Let  us  no  longer 


114  DAILY  8CRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cv. 

tliink  of  Him  as  a  shadow^'  abstraction  ;  but  viewing  Him 
ill  His  works,  let  our  meditation  of  Grod  be  sweet ;  and  let 
us  ever  dwell  with  full  interest  upon  Him,  who  will  at 
length  banish  all  that  offendeth  from  His  empire  of  tmth 
and  love  and  righteousness. 

Psalm  cv.  1-4. — Tlie  two  following  are  historical  psalms, 
and  are  conceived  bj  Mason  Good  to  have  been  prepared 
after  the  Babylonish  Captivity,  and  re- establishment  of  the 
Jews  in  their  own  land.  The  opening  verses  of  this  psalm, 
do-v^Ti  to  verse  15,  are  chiefly  taken  from  David's  hymn  in 
1  Chron.  xvL ;  and  we  can  also  notice  resemblances  to 
Psalm  Ixxviii.  The  commencement  is  most  savoury  and 
precious,  and  veiy  often  sung  in  our  churches.  Tlirough- 
out  it  may  be  regarded  as  an  ode  of  high  gratulation  and 
thanksgiving.  And  wdiat  a  memorable  notandum  have 
we  in  verse  3 — "  Let  the  heart  of  them  rejoice  that  seek 
the  Lord ! ''  Even  before  finding  Him,  and  when  yet 
only  setting  out  in  search  of  God,  are  we  called  to  enter 
upon  the  task  with  confidence  and  gladness.  And  why 
not  ? — when  we  have  the  blessed  assurance  that  he  who 
seeketh  findeth. — Let  me  then  address  myself  with  joy 
to  the  work,  seeking  till  I  find — nay,  seek  His  face  ever- 
more, as  if  for  brighter  and  brighter  manifestations  of 
His  reconciled  countenance.  There  are  many  who  say, 
who  will  show  us  any  good  ?  but  Lord  do  Thou  lift  the 
light  of  Thy  countenance  upon  me  ;  and  give  me  to  lay 
hold  of  Thy  strength,  that  Thou  mayest  make  peace  with 
me — even  the  strength  of  Thy  salvation. 

5-15. — The  retrospect  of  God's  dealings  with  Israel 
begins  after  the  preliminary  invocation  ;  and  it  is  confir- 
matory as  well  as  interesting  to  mark  the  accordancies 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


between  this  poetical  celebration  of  the  great  events  in 
the  history  of  the  peculiar  people  and  the  direct  narrative 
The  word  which  He  commanded,  or  which  He  ordained, 
should  take  effect  throughout  a  thousand  generations. 
*'  Even  to  the  tenth  generation''  is  looked  upon  as  equiva- 
lent to  for  ever ;  and  so  this  last  clause  in  verse  8  may 
well  be  regarded  as  a  count er[:)ai't  repetition  of  the  first 
clause,  in  which  He  declares  His  covenant  to  be  everlast- 
ing. The  recital  or  rehearsal  here  given,  in  very  brief  and 
general  outline,  of  their  national  annals,  begins  with  the 
promise  made  to  Abraham — a  promise  which  still  waits 
its  ultimate  fulfilment — even  that  the  land  of  Canaan 
should  be  their  enduring  and  undisturbed  inheritance. 
Their  history  in  patriarchal  times  is  here  briefly  but 
graphically  rendered.  The  protection  of  Abraham,  Isaac, 
and  Jacob,  amid  the  potentates  around  them,  is  amply 
told  in  Genesis. 

16-37. — This  passage  begins  with  the  occasion  of  Israel's 
journey  to  Eg}^t — the  famine  which  spread  from  that 
country  into  other  lands.  It  is  strongly  expressive  of  the 
Providence  which  overiTiled  this  history,  that  Joseph  is 
here  spoken  of  as  having  been  sent  before  the  famine  was 
brought  on,  and  sent  by  God.  His  word  came  to  pass 
— that  is,  his  interpretation  of  the  dreams  of  the  butler 
and  baker  was  fulfilled ;  and  then  he  was  made  trial  of 
for  the  intei-pretation  of  Pharaoh's  dream  sent  by  God, 
and  so  called  the  word  of  God.  The  counsel  of  Joseph 
influenced  and  instructed  all  the  other  counsellors  of 
Egypt — while  the  power  which  he  received  authorized 
him  with  full  command  over  all  the  dignitaries  who  were 
beneath  Pharaoh.  After  this  came  do\^^l  his  father  and 
family;  and  here  have  we  the  distinct  information  of 


116  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cv. 

Egjpt — and  so  Africa,  whereof  Egypt  was  the  key,  being 
the  land  of  Ham.  Then  follows  a  brief  notice  of  the  sore 
oppressions  which  the  Israelites  undenvent  in  their  land 
of  bondage — after  which  follow  the  account  of  Moses  and 
Aaron  being  sent  for  their  deliverance,  and  a  rehearsal  of 
the  memorable  plagues,  after  which  they  came  forth,  en- 
riched with  the  spoil  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  land,  among 
whom  they  had  acquired  great  consideration  and  even 
favour,  they  being  regarded  as  a  people  in  whose  behalf 
the  God  of  heaven  had  obviously  manifested  His  power. 
One  of  the  greatest  miracles  attendant  on  this  great 
translation  out  of  Egypt,  and  Avhich  does  not  seem  to  have 
been  recorded  in  the  direct  narrative,  is,  that  there  was 
not  one  feeble  person  in  the  whole  of  this  mighty  host. 
One  gathers  much  of  what  is  additional  and  supplemen- 
tary by  comparing  Scripture  with  Scripture. 

38-45. — The  personification  of  a  country  affects  one  as 
poetical  and  sublime — as  here,  where  Egypt  is  said  to  be 
glad  at  the  departure  of  the  Israelites.  The  psalm  con- 
cludes with  a  very  cursory  sketch  of  their  transition  to, 
and  settlement  in,  the  land  of  Canaan.  There  is  notice 
taken  of  their  miraculous  guidance  by  day  and  by  night ; 
and  omitting  altogether  the  passage  of  the  Red  Sea,  there 
is  notice  taken  of  the  miracles  in  the  wilderness.  All 
these  are  spoken  of  as  fulfilments  of  the  promise  and  the 
covenant,  from  which  the  psalmist  set  out  at  the  com- 
mencement of  this  his  historical  sketch.  The  point  to 
which  it  is  brought  here  is  that  of  gratefid  acknowledg- 
ment to  God  for  His  faithfulness  and  goodness  to  Israel. 
At  the  same  time,  the  whole  of  this  rehearsal  is  brought 
to  bear  upon  the  people,  in  the  form  of  argument  and 
moral  suasion  for  their  obedience  to  the  statutes  and  laws 


PSALM  cvi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  117 

of  the  God  of  Israel.  The  history  is  not  carried  farther 
down  than  to  Israel's  possession  of  the  promised  land. 
The  whole,  perhaps,  would  have  been  too  unwieldy  for  one 
service ;  and  so  we  have  another  psalm,  both  to  extend 
the  history,  and  supply  the  omissions  of  the  present  one. 

Psalm  cvi.  1-5. — This,  too,  is  an  historical  psalm,  and 
of  which  Horsley,  in  agreement  with  Mason  Good,  thinks 
that  it  was  written  after  the  Babylonish  Captivity.  Be- 
fore entering  on  the  recital  there  is  a  devotional  opening, 
a  call  to  the  worship  of  God,  and  prayer  to  Him  for  His 
countenance  and  blessing.  These  verses  at  the  com- 
mencement are  among  the  most  familiar,  and  most  fre- 
quently sung  of  any  in  the  whole  compass  of  our  Church 
psalmody.  Let  us,  on  whom  the  latter  ends  of  the  world 
have  come,  testify  to  the  endurance  of  God's  mercy. — 
Raise  me,  0  God,  to  the  high  spiritual  platform  of  praise, 
yet  without  relinquishing  prayer.  Enable  me  to  join  the 
power  of  celebrating  Thy  perfections  and  Thy  ways,  with 
the  habit  of  supplicating  Thy  clemency.     Remember  me, 

0  Lord,  with  that  love  which  Thou  bearest  to  Thine  o^xl1, 
and  give  me  to  see  the  good  of  Thy  chosen.  More  espe- 
cially, do  Thou  visit  me  with  Thy  Spirit,  whose  fruit  is  in 
all  righteousness,  and  goodness,  and  tiTith;  and  then  shall 

1  indeed  know  that  I  have  part  in  the  election  of  God. 

6-14. — The  rehearsal  of  Israel's  sins  and  rebellions 
commences  from  this  verse — with  a  confession  of  them- 
selves as  sinners  as  well  as  their  fathers,  to  whom  their 
attention  is  carried  back,  and  of  whose  various  perversities 
and  acts  of  disobedience  they  make  the  enumeration. 
The  provocation  at  the  Red  Sea  was  committed  before 
they  crossed  it ;  and  when  they  murmured  against  Moses 


118  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cvr. 

because  lie  had  brouglit  tliem  into  a  position  where  the 
hosts  of  Egypt  were  like  to  overwhelm  them.  Thej  in- 
deed evinced  the  grossest  want  of  understanding  and 
memory,  in  not  adverting  to  the  miracles  so  recently 
wrought  in  their  favour,  and  which,  for  the  purpose  of 
awakening  in  them  either  gratitude  or  confidence,  seemed 
so  wholly  thrown  away  upon  them.  Truly  it  was  for  His 
own  name's  sake,  and  not  for  any  goodness  in  them,  that 
He  did  so  much  for  the  Israelites.  It  is  true  that  their 
momentary  trust  was  again  revived,  after  He  had  con- 
ducted them  over  the  cloven  waters,  and  brought  them 
out  safe  from  the  enemies  whom  He  destroyed.  Then  it 
is  said  they  believed  and  they  praised  Him — -joining,  we 
have  no  doubt,  with  all  their  hearts,  in  the  songs  both  of 
Moses  and  Miriam.  But  how  evanescent  Avere  these 
emotions ;  and  how  soon  did  they  forget  His  works.- — 
Neither  did  they  wait  the  CA^olution  of  His  designs  :  they 
confided  not  in  the  general  assurance  that  God  would  not 
leave  them  to  perish,  but  constantly  anticipated,  by  their 
own  murmurings.  His  methods  of  relief  and  delivery. 
They  tempted  God — they  desired  an  experiment  or  trial 
of  His  power ;  and  by  the  doubts  mixed  up  with  this  de- 
sire, they  held  both  His  faithfulness  and  His  ability  to 
be  things  uncertain  or  problematical. 

15-33.— The  "leanness''  is  rendered  "loathing''  by 
Bishop  Horsley — which  accords  with  the  literal  state  of 
the  case ;  but  I  think  leanness,  as  applied  to  the  soul,  is 
exceedingly  descriptive  of  its  spiritual  ban-enness  and 
emptiness  of  aught  like  Divine  tastes  or  enjo^Tnents.  The 
chief  of  these  other  palpable  transgressions  are  here  enu- 
merated— as  the  striking  rebellion,  with  its  awful  conse- 
quent judgment  executed  on  the  followers  of  Dathan  and 


PSAL3I  cvi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  119 

Abiram ;  and  tlieir  worship  of  the  golden  calf,  traced  to 
what  appears  in  our  eyes  their  strange  forgetfulness  of 
all  the  miraculous  salvations  which  God  had  Avi'ought  for 
them.  Moses,  acting  as  their  mediator  with  God,  is  a  type 
of  Christ,  who  stands  before  God  in  the  breach,  to  turn 
away  His  wrath,  lest  He  should  destroy  us. — Save  us  from 
the  infidelity  of  the  Israelites — so  that  we  look  not  on  hea- 
ven as  a  vision,  but  proceeding  on  it  as  a  great  reality,  may 
we  venture  all,  and  sacrifice  all  for  a  blissful  eternity. 
For  the  particulars  of  their  defection  and  punishment  at 
Baal-peor  see  Numb.  xxv. ;  and  also  the  remarkable  dis- 
tinction conferred  on  Phinehas — the  righteousness  that 
was  counted  to  Him — the  everlasting  priesthood  that  was 
conferred  on  him  —  There  seems  a  chronological  retro- 
gression in  following  up  with  the  incidents  which  took 
place  at  the  waters  of  strife. 

84-48. — The  psalm  now  passes  on  to  his  statement  of 
the  conduct  of  the  Israelites  after  the  settlement  of  Canaan. 
They  were  mingled  among  the  heathen,  and  were  cor- 
rupted by  them,  partly  in  virtue  of  their  own  disobedience 
to  the  order  of  a  full  extermination,  and  partly  as  a  judg- 
ment from  God,  and  for  a  trial,  or  the  purposes  of  disci- 
pline. And  they  were  tried  and  found  wanting ;  and  so 
the  great  bulk  of  their  history  is  made  up  of  provocations 

on  the  one  hand,  and  punishments  on  the  other This 

psalm  may  well  have  been  as  late  as  is  commonly  ima- 
gined— that  is,  after  tlieir  return  from  the  Babylonish 
Captivity;  for  all  the  previous  national  rebellions  may 
be  included  in  the  expression  that  "  many  times  did  He 
deliver,''  but  they  again  provoked  Him.  And,  besides,  the 
Babylonish  Captivity  is  the  only  one  of  which  we  can  dis- 
tinctly say — that  God  made  them  to  be  pitied  of  those  who 


1-20  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cvii. 

had  carried  them  away.  The  gathering  back  into  Judea 
was  not  comjileted,  but  in  progress  only ;  or  at  least  there 
were  many  still  among  the  heathen,  respecting  whom  the 
prayer  of  verse  47  could  be  lifted  up,  even  so  late  as  the 
time  of  Nehemiah. 

Psalm  cvil  1-7. — This  is  a  psalm  of  great  poetical  and 
literary  merit — a  celebration  of  Grod's  providence  as  ex- 
emplified both  in  the  guidance  and  guardianship  of  His 
people  as  a  nation,  and  in  various  states  of  private  life. 
It  begins  with  the  acknowledgments  and  invocations  of 
gratitude  to  the  Father  of  all ;  and  a  few  opening  verses 
seem  to  fix  its  occasion  and  date  to  the  period  of  the  re- 
turn from  Babylon.  He  had  then  redeemed  Israel  from 
the  hand  of  their  enemy,  and  gathered  these  poor  child- 
ren of  a  wide  dispersion  from  all  quarters.  Their  wan- 
dering and  friendless  state  when  in  captivity,  is  here 
feelingly  represented — many  of  them  far  from  the  abodes 
of  men,  glad  to  flee  and  hide  themselves  from  their  cruel 
mockers  and  persecutors ;  and  often  overtaken,  in  the 
pathless  deserts  of  the  countiy  to  which  they  had  been 
carried,  by  hunger  and  thirst  in  all  their  extremity.  It 
would  look  as  if  their  sufferings  had  increased  upon  them 
by  a  process  of  aggravation,  which  at  length  reduced  them 
to  cry  unto  the  Lord  in  their  uttermost  helplessness,  and 
He  responded  to  the  voice  of  their  supplication.  He 
turned  the  hearts  of  kings  to  favour  them  ;  and  by  them, 
as  the  instiTiments  of  His  goodness.  He  led  them  to  Ju- 
dea, and  to  Jerusalem  its  metropolis — their  own  city,  for 
a  city  of  habitation.  He  conducted  them  by  the  right 
way,  not  only  directing,  but  by  His  Providence  watch- 
ing over  them. 


PSALM  cvir.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  121 

8-22  — The  verse  of  invocation  to  praise  and  grateful 
acknowledgment,  and  which  comes  in  at  inters^als  as  a 
sort  of  chorus  or  interlude,  seems  not  so  much  the  preface 
of  its  succeeding  as  the  conclusion  of  its  foregoing  passage. 
The  first  of  the  two  passages  under  our  present  considera- 
tion is  fully  as  applicable  to  the  case  of  the  Jews  wdi^en  in 
Babylon,  as  the  former  or  preceding  passage  was  to  their 
case  when  in  the  act  of  returning  from  Babylon.  There 
they  were  captives  bound  in  affliction  and  iron,  because 
of  their  rebellion  against  God,  and  their  contempt  of  His 
counsel.  There,  too,  they  longed  after  Jerusalem,  (Psalm 
cxxxvii.)  and  at  length  were  satisfied.  For  when  their 
hearts  were  brought  down  with  hard  labour  they  "  cried 
unto  the  Lord,  and  He  heard  them  ;"  and  the  gratulation 
of  verse  15  is  called  forth  because  He  cut  asunder  those 
bars  and  bands  which  are  adverted  to  in  verse  14.  The 
next  passage  does  not  stand  peculiarly  related  to  the  Jews 
in  Babylon,  but  to  a  common  experience  among  men  of 
taose  visitations,  in  the  form  of  disease,  which  they  bring 
upon  themselves  by  a  life,  it  may  be,  of  sinful  indulgence. 
Tiiese,  too,  when  reduced,  as  the  captives  of  the  former 
passage  were,  to  their  prayers,  experience  the  compassions 
of  our  Almighty  Father,  and  obtain  at  His  hands  a  heal- 
insr  deliverance,  the  acknowledgment  for  which  is  given 
in  verses  21  and  22. 

23-32. — Then  follows  another  variety  of  human  experi- 
ence, here  rendered  with  great  force  and  fidelity  of  de- 
Bcription :  the  case  of  mariners  who  "  go  down  to  the  sea 
in  ships,  and  behold  the  wonders  of  the  Lord  in  the  great 
deep."  These,  too,  are  often  brought  into  extremity,  and 
reduced  to  the  felt  necessity  of  crying  unto  Him  who 
alone  can  still  the  tumults  of  the  sea,  for  deliverance  from  a 

VOL,  III.  F 


122  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cvir. 

storm,  even  as  He  can  still  the  tumults  of  the  people  when 
cried  unto  for  deliverance  from  the  fierceness  and  the  power 
of  enemies.  Tlie  despair  of  the  sailors,  and  their  reeling 
to  and  fro  in  the  sorely  vexed  and  agitated  vessel,  are  very 
graphically  set  forth  ;  and  only  equalled  hy  the  gentleness 
and  beauty  of  those  sentences  which  record  the  peaceful 
termination  of  their  dangers — when,  after  cr)4ng  unto  the 
Lord,  He  brings  them  out  of  their  distresses,  and  brings 
them  into  their  desired  haven,  making  the  stoiTQ  a  calm, 
and  causing  the  waves  to  be  still,  so  that  the  affrighted 
seamen  are  glad  because  they  are  quiet. 

83-43. — What  remains  is  of  a  more  miscellaneous  cha- 
racter, presenting  us  with  additional  instances  in  detail 
of  vicissitudes  in  the  lot  and  circumstances  of  men, 
and  connecting  these  with  the  moral  administration  of 
Him  who  is  the  maker  and  governor  of  all.  It  is  because 
of  the  wickedness  of  them  who  dwell  therein  that  He 
turns  the  fruitful  land  into  barrenness.  Emigrant  settlers 
in  that  nomadic  age,  on  the  other  hand,  hungrj^  and 
destitute  though  they  be,  yet  if  they  turn  and  please  God, 
will  have  the  wilderness  turned  into  a  fertile  region,  where 
they  might  sow  and  plant,  and  build  cities,  and  become 
wealthy  and  flourishing.  But  they  are  not  secure  from 
vicissitudes,  for  again  may  they  be  brought  low,  through 
the  vice  and  violence  of  their  i-ulers  ;  who,  in  their  turn, 
however,  may  be  cast  down  from  their  proud  elevation, 
while  the  victims  of  their  tyranny  are  not  only  delivered 
but  advanced  to  prosperity  and  honour. — Let  us  make 
a  study  of  these  vicissitudes,  and  we  shall  leam  what 
the  way  and  the  designs  of  Providence  really  are — that 
the  regards  of  Him  who  sitteth  on  high  rest  upon  the 
good — that  He  loveth  and  patronizeth  righteousness — ■ 


PSALM  cix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  123 

that  He  hateth  and  will  inflict  its  merited  doom  upon 
all  iniquity. 

Psalm  cviii, — This  psalm  is  a  compilation  from  two 
fonner  ones,  of  Ivii.  7-11  and  Ix.  5-12.  It  is  the  effusion 
of  a  warrior  who  had  had  experience  of  adversities.  God 
had  cast  him  off  at  times — (verse  11) — but  still  he  had 
not  lost  confidence,  for  still  his  hope  is  in  God.  Through 
Him  it  is  his  assured  expectation  that  he  shall  do  valiantly 
— that  he  shall  tread  dowTi  his  enemies.  But  though  this 
primarily  be  the  psalm  of  a  monarch  and  a  commander, 
there  is  much  in  it  that  is  signally  api^licable  to  all  God's 
serv^ants.  The  praise  might  be  fully  concurred  in  by  all ; 
and  more  especially  in  celebrating  that  blessed  conjunc- 
tion of  truth  and  mercy,  which  is  the  great  principle  of 
the  Divine  economy,  and  foundation  of  all  our  hopes. 
And  ours,  too,  is  a  Avai-fare  in  which  we  have  many  ene- 
mies, and  for  success  in  which  we  have  to  cast  ourselves 
on  Him  who  is  the  "  Lord  our  strength,  the  Captain  of 
our  salvation,''  and  our  great  refuge  and  deliverer  from 
the  troubles  of  life. — Let  us  not  trust  in  an  arm  of  flesii. 
Let  us  not  trust  in  man,  but  in  God.  I  may,  perhaps, 
even  now  be  entering  on  a  painful  collision  with  my  fel« 
lows.  Let  me  neither  fail  in  duty  to  them,  nor  in  depena- 
ence  on  Thee,  0  God. 

Psalm  cix.  1-8. — Mason  Good  conceives  this  psalm  to 
have  been  prompted  by  the  treachery  of  Ahithoi^hel; 
while  Horsley  entitles  it — Messiah's  Prophetic  Maledic- 
tion of  the  Jewish  Nation — a  prophecy,  and  not  a  prayer, 
though  delivered  in  the  form  of  complaint  and  impreca- 
tion ;  but  really  having  nothing  in  it  more  offensive  than 


124  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cix. 

the  prophetic  curses  of  the  patriarchs.  For  aught  I  can 
see,  though  Horsley's  hypothesis  might  be  sound,  yet 
Good's  may  be  a  true  one ;  in  which  case  I  would  say,  as 
before,  that  if  lawful  to  war  for  the  destruction  of  enemies, 
it  should  be  as  lawful  to  wish  for,  and  why  not  as  lawful 
to  pray  for  it  ?  But  if  there  be  aught  in  the  progressive- 
ness,  which  I  have  often  had  occasion  to  remark  as  being 
one  of  the  properties  or  characters  of  God's  moral  admini- 
stration, all  such  wishes  are  proscribed  by  Christianity, 
even  that  Christianity  which  will  at  length  put  an  end 
to  all  wars.  For  the  Bishop's  theory,  it  may  well  and 
forcibly  be  said  that  the  opening  verses  are  striking  de- 
scriptions of  our  Saviour's  enemies,  even  those  enemies  for 
whom  He  prayed,  and  more  especially  of  Judas,  at  whose 
hand  Satan  stood  when  he  instigated  him  to  betray  Jesus. 
But  more  than  this,  Peter,  in  Acts  i.,  expressly  refers  to 
Judas  the  prophecy  or  i3rayer  here  uttered,  that  another 
should  take  his  office,  or  charge,  or  bishopric — eTnaKOTrrjj 
both  in  the  Septuagint  version  and  Greek  New  Testament. 
• — My  God,  save  me  from  the  awful  judgment  of  my  prayer 
becoming  sin. 

9-20. — There  are  prayers  here  which  will  not  admit  of 
the  explanation  or  vindication  that  I  have  already  given 
— that  is,  if  it  be  lawful  to  war  for  the  destruction  of 
enemies,  Avhy  may  it  not  be  lawful  both  to  wish  and  to 
pray  for  it  ?  But  there  is  more  here  than  the  destruction 
of  enemies  that  is  prayed  for,  and  that  is,  the  wretched- 
ness and  poverty  of  their  children  ;  unless,  indeed,  it  shall 
be  pled,  that  the  posterity  of  defeated  and  destroyed  war- 
riors inherit  their  quarrels,  and  are  actuated  by  their 
spirit  of  revenge.  Yet,  on  the  whole,  I  do  not  feel  in 
dependent  of  the  hypothesis,  that  these  prayers  are  the 


PSALM  cix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  125 

predictions  of  inspired  men,  speaking  not  of  themselves, 
but  as  moved  hj  tlie  Holy  Ghost.  They  read  better  as  de- 
nunciations than  as  prayers ;  and  I  must  confess  a  certain 
revolt  from  such  sentences,  if  considered  to  be  petitions, 
as — "  Neither  let  there  be  any  to  favour  his  fatherless 
children.''  Viewed  as  denunciations,  they  strongly  indi- 
cate God's  corporate  dealing  with  races  and  families — the 
punishment  of  fathers  extending  to  children,  and  men 
suffering  for  the  sin  of  their  ancestors — the  iniquity  of 
their  fathers  being  held  by  God  in  continual  remembrance, 
and  the  sin  of  their  mothers  not  blotted  out. 

Fehruari/y  1846. 

21-31. — Let  me  at  least  pray  that  none  may  speak  evil 
against  my  souL  Thou  knowest,  0  God,  how  poor  and 
needy  I  am,  and  what  it  is  that  wounds  my  heart.  De- 
liver me,  0  God ;  save  me  from  morbid  anxieties  ;  and 
enable  me  to  walk  wisely  and  warily.  Let  not  the  re- 
proaches of  my  adversaries  come  upon  me :  neither  let 
there  be  a  shaking  of  the  head  on  the  part  of  those 
who  would  triumph  in  my  fall.  I  need,  0  God,  to  be 
importunate  in  my  reiterations  for  help,  and  guidance, 
and  extrication.  Let  it  be  made  manifest  that  Thou 
favourest  me,  0  God.  Rich  in  Thy  blessings,  let  me  re- 
joice even  in  the  midst  of  ciiiel  mockeries  and  maledic- 
tions on  eveiy  side  of  me.  Cause  me  to  praise  Thee,  0 
God.  "With  this  manifestation  I  so  much  desire  of  Thy- 
self as  the  living  God,  instead  of  viewing  Thee,  as  here- 
tofore, as  but  an  abstraction,  or  a  principle,  or  a  name  : 
"vvith  this  entertainment  of  Thee  as  a  person,  rather  than 
a  principle,  help  me  to  praise  as  well  as  pray.  Be  at 
my  right  hand,  0  God,  to  save  me  from  the  accuser  of 


126  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  ex. 

the  brethren,  and  from  all  whom  he  would  instigate  to 
condemn  my  soul. 

Psalm  ex. — This  is  a  truly  noble  psalm,  notwithstand- 
ing its  obscurities.  The  application  to  the  Messiah  is 
clear  and  undoubted.  (See  Mark  xii.  36,  and  Heb.  v.  6, 
vii.  17.)     The  exaltation  of  Christ  and  triumph  over  His 

enemies  form  the  themes  of  this  lofty  composition By 

"  the  rod  of  His  strength,''  we  understand  the  sceptre  of 
His  power,  wherewith  He  subdues  and  gains  the  mastery 
over  all  who  are  opposed  to  Him. — In  the  day  of  Thy 
power,  0  God,  may  I  "  be  made  willing,''  even  through 
the  power  of  Christ  resting  upon  me — that  regenerative 
power  which  will  extend  to  a  host  whom  no  man  can 
number — so  as  to  make  the  progeny  of  the  Redeemer 
more  numerous  than  dew-drops,  these  children  of  the 
morning.  Give  me,  0  Lord,  the  beauty  of  holiness  ;  and 
forgive  my  wi'etched  deviations  therefrom  in  the  times 
that  are  past,  so  that  no  more  mention  shall  be  made  of 
them.  Thine,  0  Sa^dour,  is  an  everlasting  Priesthood. 
From  the  place  whereunto  Thou  art  exalted  do  Thou 
look  down  upon  me,  and  "see  of  the  travail  of  Thy 
soul  and  be  satisfied."  The  day  is  yet  coming  when  the 
little  stone  shall  wax  into  a  great  mountain  and  occupy 
the  whole  earth — when  the  kings  of  the  earth  shall  be 
overthrown,   and  their  kingdoms  become  the  kingdoms 

of  the  Messiah Is  it  death  that  is  signified  by  His 

"drinking  of  the  brook  in  the  way?" — that  river  of 
separation  which  flowed  between  us  and  God.  Is  it 
His  drinking  of  the  cup  which  His  Father  put  into  His 
hands  that  is  here  meant  ?  and  was  it  therefore  that  His 
head  was  lifted  up  ?    It  was  because  He  underwent  the 


PSALM  cxii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  127 

deatli  of  the  cross  tliat  Grod  higlily  exalted  Him.  (Pliil. 
ii.  8,  9.) 

Psalm  cxi. — We  are  now  in  the  midst  of  veiy  precious 
psalms. — Give  me,  0  Lord,  in  the  spirit  of  the  admirable 
one  before  me,  to  praise  Thee  with  my  whole  heart.  Lift 
me,  0  God,  to  a  faculty  for  this  high  exercise.  And  0 
that  I  had  more  of  social  religion,  more  of  fellowship  with 

others  in  the  assemblies  and  congregations  of  the  saints 

There  is  a  high  sanction  given  here  for  the  religious  study 
of  the  works  of  nature.  But  the  works  which  are  specified 
throughout  these  verses  are  more  the  works  of  Providence, 
and  such  as  illustrate  the  moral  perfections  of  God,  and 
the  character  of  His  government  and  dealings  with  the 
children  of  men— as  His  righteousness  and  comj)as- 
sion,  and  fidelity  to  His  covenant,  and  those  wonders  of 
power  by  which  He  ushered  His  people  from  Egypt  to 
Canaan.  Let  me  be  rightly  impressed,  0  God,  by  the 
sureness  and  stability  of  Thy  commandments,  and  of  all 
Thy  testimonies :  they  stand  fast  and  for  ever.  Let  me 
evince  my  good  understanding  by  the  faithful  observ- 
ance of  them.  Let  me  be  wise  in  Thy  fear ;  and  let  me 
ever  have  a  revering  sense  of  Thy  truth,  and  justice, 
and  holiness. 

Psalm  cxil — This  is  a  pre-eminent  psalm. — Give  me, 

0  Lord,  to  delight  greatly  in  Thy  commandments,  and  so 
that  my  spiritual  or  inner  heaven  may  commence,  and  be 
carried  fonvard  here.  Let  me  not  be  anxiously  fearful 
for  my  children,  but  cast  this  care,  too,  and  with  all  con- 
fidence, upon  God.     He  will  provide ;  and  0  grant  that 

1  may  leave  them  an  inlieritance  in  a  light  shining  before 


128  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxiir. 

men.  Fix  upon  me  all  the  characteristics  of  an  upright 
and  good  man — integrity  and  generosity,  and  sensibility 
to  the  wants  and  sufferings  of  others.  I  long  for  the  light 
of  further  manifestations.  Thou  knowest  my  state  of 
darkness,  and  what  the  engrossments  are  which  most  ab- 
sorb and  occupy  my  thoughts.  Set  me  free  from  these, 
0  Grod,  that  henceforth  I  may  serve  Thee  without  dis- 
traction. Give  me  discretion  in  the  management  of  my 
aifairs,  that  I  may  not  be  moved  or  terrified  for  evil  tid- 
ings of  disaster  of  any  sort.  May  my  ways  please  Thee, 
0  God,  and  then  shall  I  have  peace  on  every  side.  Let 
my  heart  be  fixed,  trusting  in  Thee  as  the  Lord  my 
Helper ;  and  then  shall  I  not  be  afraid  of  what  man  can 
do  unto  me.  Let  my  desire  upon  my  enemies  be  for  their 
conversion,  0  God.  I  feel  how  deficient  I  have  been  in 
the  liberalities  of  Christian  benevolence.  May  I  so  acquit 
myself  as  to  inherit  Thy  promises,  0  God ;  and  save  me 
from  the  destruction  which  cometh  on  those  whose  god 
is  this  world,  and  who  mind  earthly  things. 

Psalm  cxiii. — A  joyful  effusion  of  thanksgiving  and 
praise.  It  is  an  ascription  of  glory  to  the  Lord  through- 
out all  time  and  all  space — from  this  time  forth,  and  for 
ever,  (verse  2,)  and  throughout  the  whole  world,  (verse  3.) 
He  is  represented  as  the  Head  of  the  moral  world,  being 
above  all  nations,  and  the  Head  of  the  material,  as  being 
above  the  heavens,  (verse  4  ;)  so  that  well  may  it  be  said 
of  Him — "  He  dwelleth  on  high."  (verse  5.)  Yet,  though 
high,  He  humbleth  Himself  to  view  the  various  depart- 
ments of  His  own  creation.  Even  to  look  on  the  things 
in  heaven  is  a  condescension  by  Him  who  chargeth  His 
angels  with  folly.     But  He  stops  not  here :   He  dwells 


PSALM  cxiv.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  129 

with  the  lowly  on  earth Let  us  here  remark  the  eleva- 
tion which  it  was  lield  to  be  in  these  days  for  a  wife  to 
become  a  mother,  and  have  children.  This  is  acknow- 
ledged, in  various  places  of  Scripture,  as  a  deliverance  and 
preferment  akin  to  that  of  raising  men  from  the  humilia- 
tions of  poverty,  or  enslavement,  or  disgrace  among  men. 
Witness  the  effusions  of  Hannah  in  the  Old  Testament, 
and  of  Mary  and  Elizabeth  in  the  Xew.  This  psalm  is 
regarded  by  many  as  a  composition  set  forth  by  the  cap- 
tives on  their  return  from  Babylon.  The  sentiment  ac- 
cords well  with  this  supposition,  though  there  seems  no 
\erj  distinct  evidence  to  prove  it. 

Psalm  cxiv. — The  reference  to  Judah  in  verse  2  makes 
it  probable  that  this  psalm  was  composed  after  Jerusalem 
had  become  the  seat  of  the  Hebrew  monarchy,  and  before 
the  disseveration  from  it  of  the  ten  tribes — for  then,  too, 
Israel  was  within  its  dominion.  The  events  which  are  here 
celebrated  date  a  far  way  back ;  but  then  the  historical 
recollections  of  the  olden  times  were  incorporated  with 
the  religion  of  the  chosen  people ;  and  their  frequent 
anniversaries  gave  frequent  opportunities  for  the  poetic 
and  devotional  recitation  of  them.  Both  Jordan  and 
the  Red  Sea  attest  the  part  which  Ood  had  in  the  trans- 
lation of  His  own  people  from  those  of  a  strange  languaga 
"The  sea  saw  it'' — saw  or  felt  the  power  of  God  upon 
them,  and  obeyed  it.  The  hills  bounded,  or  heaved, 
as  at  the  giving  of  the  law,  when  Sinai,  with  all  its 
eminences,  quaked  before  the  presence  of  the  Most  High 
— even  of  Him  who  caused  waters  to  arise  in  the  desert, 
nay,  struck  a  fountain  out  of  the  hard  and  flinty  rock. 
A  triumpliant  commemoration. 

f2 


130  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxvi. 

Psalm  cxv. — This  psalm  seems  to  have  been  composed 
after  a  victory — the  merit  of  which  the  Israelites  here 
disclaim  for  themselves,  and  ascribe  wholly  to  Him  who 
is  the  God  of  battles — whose  mercy  and  whose  truth  are 
alike  done  homage  to.  The  consideration  that  they  were 
heathen  over  whom  they  had  prevailed,  leads  to  the  insti- 
tution of  a  contrast  between  their  gods  and  the  true  God 
in  the  heavens.  After  a  just  account  and  appreciation  of 
the  vanity  of  idols,  they  call  on  the  people  of  all  classes 
to  transfer  their  confidence,  and  place  it  in  the  right 
quarter,  even  on  the  Lord  Jehovah,  who  had  been  their 
help  and  defence  against  all  enemies.  They  who  fear  the 
Lord  are  probably  the  stranger  proselytes,  who  are  thus 
distinguished  from  the  priests  and  people  of  their  own 
nation.  The  same  threefold  distinction  is  repeated  in 
verses  12  and  13.  There  are  promises  addressed  to  them 
of  temporal  good  things  in  the  increase  of  their  wealth 
and  their  families  ;  and  the  jiure  theology  of  the  comj)o- 
sition  stands  nobly  distinguished  from  the  senseless  and 
degrading  superstitions  of  the  peoj^le  around.  He  who 
dwells  in  the  heavens,  and  who  made  both  heaven  and 
earth — the  latter  for  a  habitation  to  men — He  is  the  God 
of  their  acknowledgments  and  worship.  They  had  been 
saved  from  death  and  destruction,  and  were  still  in  the 
land  of  the  living — therefore  would  they  praise  the  Lord, 
and  trust  in  His  preservations  for  ever. 

Psalm  cxvi. — If  the  former  was  a  national,  this  is  more 
of  a  personal  psalm  ;  and  it  shines  forth  in  the  collection 
as  a  star  of  the  first  magnitude.  Many  commentators 
ascribe  it  to  Hezekiah,  on  the  occasion  of  his  recovery 
from  threatened  death;  and  it  is  certainly  in  keeping 


PSALM  cxvii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  131 

with  tnat  event.  The  first  verses,  more  particuharly,  are 
well  suited  to  the  state  of  Hezekiah's  mind,  under  what 
he  had  heen  led  to  apprehend  as  his  mortal  disease,  and 
also  the  whole  of  it  to  that  enlargement  and  gratitude 
which  he  felt  when  the  prolongation  of  his  life  was  granted 
to  him. — Give  me  to  love  Thee,  0  Lord.  Give  me  to  say 
of  Thee  unto  my  soul  at  all  times — "  return  unto  Thy  rest." 
May  I  walk  before  Thee,  0  God,  and  be  of  service  to  Thy 
cause  in  the  land  of  the  living.  Open  my  mouth  that  I 
may  speak ;  and  give  me  such  a  faith  as  will  prompt  the 
utterance.  Lord  deliver  me  from  all  rash  suspicion  of 
my  fellows ;  yet  let  me  trust  in  Thee,  and  not  in  men. 
Loose  me  from  the  bonds  of  my  guilt  and  corruption,  that 
henceforth  I  may  go  onward  with  alacrity  and  vigour  on 
the  walk  of  new  obedience.  May  my  whole  life  be  one 
of  dedication,  and  thanksgiving,  and  praise. 

Psalm  cxvii. — This,  the  shortest  of  the  psalms,  is  alto- 
gether attuned  to  praise.  0  that  I  could  rise  to  this 
more  elevated  platform  of  the  spiritual  life ;  and  having 
my  own  heart  filled  with  gratitude  and  a  sense  of  God's 
glory,  could  call  upon  all  around  me  to  join  in  the  lofty 
celebration  of  Him  who  sitteth  on  high,  and  i-uleth  over 
all.  Out  of  the  depths  would  I  cry  unto  Thee,  0  Lord, 
that  I  may  be  brought  out  of  the  miry  and  the  horrible 
place,  and  placed  on  that  secure  and  serene  summit,  where 
I  may  descry  Thine  excellencies,  and  rejoice  in  the  con- 
templation of  them.  0  give  me  to  make  mention  of  Thy 
merciful  kindness,  and  let  my  mouth  be  opened,  so  that  I 
can  proclaim  to  others  what  the  Lord  hath  done  for  my 
soul.  The  call  here  to  praise  the  Lord  is  addressed  to  all 
nations,  and  to  all  people ;  and,  as  frequently  in  these 


132  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         psalm  cxviii. 

sacred  compositions,  tlie  mercy  and  tlie  truth  are  spoken 
of  together.     (See  the  analogous  Psalm  Ivii.) 

Psalm  cxviii.  1-16. — This  seems  to  have  been  composed 
after  a  ^4ctorJ,  as  a  number  of  the  psalms  undoubtedly 
•were,  according  to  the  following  important  testimony 
from  Josephus — "  And  now  David  being  freed  from  wai^ 
and  dangers,  and  enjoying  for  the  future  a  profound  peace, 
composed  sacred  songs  and  hymns  in  various  metres,  some 
of  which  were  trimeters,  and  others  pentameters.  He  also 
constructed  instruments  of  music,  and  taught  the  Levites 
to  chant  hymns  to  Grod,  as  well  on  the  Sabbath  day  as 
on  other  festivals."  But  how  prccious,  besides,  is  this 
psalm  to  the  private  Christian — for  he,  too,  is  often  in 
distress  and  difficulties,  till  set  by  the  Lord  in  a  large 
place.  Let  me  not  fear  what  man  can  do  unto  me.  Let 
me  trust  not  in  man,  but  in  God.  Let  me  see  my  desire 
on  mine  adversaries ;  but  let  this  desire,  0  Grod,  be  for 
their  repentance  and  salvation.  AYhat  dangers  and  diffi- 
culties David  was  helped  through  !  let  me  look  unto  God 

and  take  courage In  verse  13,  Thou  must  refer  to  one 

of  David's  enemies.  We  might  well  apply  it  to  Satan. — 
0  God,  enable  me  to  resist  him,  that  he  may  flee  from 
me.  Help  me  to  do  valiantly  in  the  Christian  warfare, 
that  I  might  pass  onward  fi'om  the  exclamation  of — "  0 
wretched  man ''  to  the  acclamation  of — "  I  thank  God, 
through  Jesus  Christ  my  Lord.''  Thus  will  the  Lord 
become  my  streng-th  and  song,  because  my  salvation. 
Then  shall  I  rejoice  in  love  and  liberty. 

17-29. — My  God,  I  pray  for  enlargement,  and  for  deli- 
verance from  Thy  chastening  hand.  Above  all  things, 
lead  me  in  that  patent  way,  and  through  that  open  door, 


pjJALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTUlfE  READINGS.  133 

by  whicli  alone  I  can  win  to  salvation,  and  righteousness, 
and  spiritual  life.  0  may  I  not  only  live,  but  live  to 
declare  the  works  of  God.  This  passage  is  full  of  gospel, 
and  parts  of  it  are  referred  to  as  such  by  the  Saviour 
Himself  The  corner  stone,  and  the  blessedness  of  Him 
who  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  clearly  relate  to 
Him.  Though  at  its  first  composition  then,  the  gate  here 
spoken  of  may  have  been  understood  as  the  gate  of  the 
Temple,  and  the  day  may  have  been  some  Jewish  anni- 
versary— yet  now  let  us  apply  them  to  the  gate  of  Christ's 
mediatorship,  and  to  His  proclaimed  day  of  salvation. 
Let  me  forthwith  enter  that  gate ;  and  to-day,  while  it  is 
called  to-day,  let  me  harden  not  my  heart,  but  let  me 
rejoice  and  be  glad  therein.  Save  me  from  guilt,  0  Lord, 
and  send  the  grace  which  will  cause  my  soul  to  prosper 
and  be  in  health.  In  Thy  light  may  I  clearly  see  light ; 
and  now  that  I  am  reconciled  by  the  sacrifice  of  Christ, 
give  me  to  offer  up  the  spiritual  sacrifice  of  all  my  evil 
affections — binding  them  unto  the  altar,  to  be  utterly 
consumed  as  burnt -offerings  Avere.  Then  will  I  praise 
God  at  liberty,  and  make  mention  of  His  goodness  to 
my  soul. 

Psalm  cxix.  1-8. — The  general  lesson  of  this  noble  psalm 
is  the  supreme  worth  and  importance  of  God's  revelation 
to  man,  designated  in  various  ways — as  His  word.  His 
law.  His  testimonies,  His  statutes,  His  judgments.  The 
inestimable  properties  of  this  revelation  are  largely  de- 
scanted upon,  in  a  multitude  of  distinct  sayings,  the  weight 
and  preciousness  of  which  are  felt  by  every  spiritual  mind. 
Tlie  outset  is  remarkably  the  same  with  that  of  Psalm  i. 
— ^0  Lord,  cleanse  me  from  my  defilements,  that  henceforth 


134  DAILY  SCRIPtURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxix. 


I  may  walk  in  Thy  law.  Grive  me  to  treasure  up  Thy 
testimonies,  and  to  seek  Thee,  not  with  a  divided,  but 
with  the  whole  heart.  My  God,  where  is  my  diligence  in 
keeping  Thy  precepts,  so  as  to  do  no  iniquity  ?  I  truly 
need  Thy  direction,  and  the  impulse  of  Thy  Spirit,  to  the 
work  of  obedience.  Enable  me,  0  Grod,  to  lift  up  my  face 
in  society  without  shame,  on  the  strength  of  my  past  sins 
being  now  blotted  out,  and  my  present,  honest,  consistent, 
and  aspiring  Christianity.  Put  uprightness  and  truth 
into  my  inward  parts.  Let  me  be  wise  and  understand- 
ing to  know  what  the  will  and  the  judgments  of  the  Lord 
are.  Leave  me  not,  then,  in  darkness,  0  Lord ;  but  en- 
lighten me  in  Thy  way,  and  enable  me  to  keep  on  it. 

9-16. — 0  for  purity  on  a  religious  principle,  and  ground- 
ed on  an  earnest  attention  and  respect  for  the  Word  of 
God.  The  psalmist  had,  in  the  last  stanza,  pronounced 
on  the  blessedness  of  those  who  seek  the  Lord  with  the 
whole  heart ;  and  here  he  says  in  prayer — that  thus  have 
I  sought  Thee.  Let  me  be  enabled  to  say  so  in  truth. 
Let  me  not  deviate  from  the  path  of  Thy  commandments; 
and  to  ensure  this,  let  me  lay  up  Thy  word  in  my  heart, 
and  cherish  a  fearful  sense  therefrom  of  the  evil  of  sin. 
0  my  God,  Thou  knowest  how  foreign  from  the  whole  set 
and  habit  of  my  mind  is  that  of  respect  unto  Thee  as  a 
master  and  commander.  Set  up  thine  authority  within 
me,  and  remind  me  at  all  times  what  that  is  which  Thou 
wouldst  have  me  to  do.  For  what  title  have  I  to  take  up 
Thy  words  in  my  mouth,  so  as  to  speak  of  them  to  others, 
unless  I  observe  them  for  myself  Restore  me  to  the 
paths  of  righteousness,  and  then  by  Thee  shall  my  lips  be 
opened.  And  let  me  not  only  meditate  on  Thy  precepts, 
and  keep  them  in  remembrance,  but  may  they  prove  the 


PSALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  135 

rejoicing  of  my  heart — may  I  delight  in  them  as  in  the 
very  comfort  and  sustenance  of  my  soul. 

17-24. — Deal  bountifully  with  me,  0  God,  in  the  way  of 
clearing  off  all  my  present  anxieties,  and  introduce  me  to 
light  and  life,  and  enlargement ....  Verse  18  is  among  the 
most  precious  of  our  Scriptural  notabilia.  I  indeed  feel 
myself  a  stranger — and  have  man^ellously  little  sympathy 
with  my  fellows ;  but  hide  not  from  me  the  knowledge  of 
Thy  will,  nor  suffer  me  to  hide  myself  from  those  of  my 
own  flesh.  I  have  long  fixed  on  verse  20  as  the  most 
descriptive  of  my  own  state  and  experience  of  any  in  the 
Bible.  What  straining  have  I  had  after  a  right  under- 
standing of  God  and  His  ways,  more  especially  the  way  of 
salvation  ! — Give  me  greater  clearness  and  fulness  of 
understanding,  0  God.  Save  me,  save  me,  0  God,  from 
reproach  and  contempt :  I  cannot  say — because  I  have  kept 
Thy  testimonies ;  but  oh,  accept  of  my  contrite  acknow- 
ledgments, and  let  me  henceforth  not  anly  meditate  on 
Thy  words,  but  let  them  both  rejoice  my  heart  and  regu- 
late all  my  goings.  Then  will  I  rise  above  my  fellows 
who  would  triumph  over  me.  Save  me  from  their  calum- 
nies, 0  Lord :  save  me  from  the  children  of  pride  and  of 
power.  But  let  me  bear  a  constant  respect  to  Thine  all- 
seeing  eye ;  and  in  the  moments  of  collision  and  contro- 
versy, let  me  look  upward  to  Thee  for  the  wisdom  and 
the  charity  which  might  teach  me  rightly  to  acquit  myself. 

25-32. — Verses  25  and  32  I  mark  as  eminent  among 
the  notabilia  of  Scripture.  How  strikingly  descriptive  of 
myself,  and  I  believe  of  every  natural  man — that  "  my 
soul  cleaveth  unto  the  dust,''  unto  the  things  of  sense,  and 
sight,  and  materialism — so  as  to  be  dead  unto  God  and 
the  things  of  faith !    Quicken  and  make  me  alive  unto 


136  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxix. 

Thyself,  0  God;  and  let  me  add  witli  the  psalmist — 
"accoi-ding  to  Thy  word;''  a  clause  subjoined  to  other 
petitions  beside  this — as  in  verse  9,  where,  through  the 
directions  of  the  word,  its  disciple  is  said  to  be  purified ; 
and  verse  28,  where,  by  the  encouragements  of  the  word, 
strength  is  prayed  for ;  and  here,  where  it  is  still  accord- 
ing to  the  word,  or,  by  a  right  sense  of  its  doctrines  and 
declarations,  a  living  faith  is  imparted  to  the  soul.  It 
is  thus  that  all  the  influences  of  the  Spirit  are,  by  and 
through,  and  according  to  the  word,  wherewith  He  en- 
tirely quadrates  in  all  His  motions  and  revelations.  It  is 
when  thus  operated  upon,  and  converted  and  enlightened 
myself,  that  I  am  both  incited  and  enabled,  out  of  the 
fulness  of  a  renewed  heart,  to  speak  to  others  also,  (verses 
26  and  27.)  So,  then,  enlarge  my  heart,  0  God.  Loose 
all  its  bands  and  straitenings.  Let  me  break  forth  and  be- 
yond the  sense  of  guilt,  and  the  power  of  corruption ;  and 
then  shall  I  walk  and  not  be  weary,  run  and  not  faint. 

33-40. — Let  me  persevere  in  obedience,  for  it  is  only  by 
maintaining  this  unto  the  end  that  I  shall  have  any  part 
in  the  perseverance  of  the  saints.  Let  me  be  understand- 
ing what  Thy  law  is,  and  this  will  enlist  my  affections 
into  the  work  of  obeying  it.  How  the  moral  and  intellec- 
tual act  and  react  on  each  other !  Yet  we  have  not  to 
'prs.j  only  for  the  one,  in  the  confidence  that  the  other  will 
of  course  follow.  We  have  to  pray  for  both — not  only  for 
the  instruction  and  the  understanding,  as  in  verses  33  and 
34,  but  for  the  willingness,  as  in  verse  S6. — My  God,  let 
me  ever  prefer  Thy  seiwice  to  that  of  Mammon ;  and  let 
me  delight  myself  greatly  in  Thy  commandments  —  Verse 
37  has  been  long  one  of  my  notabilia.  Let  me  shrink  from 
the  first  beginnings  of  evil,  by  shutting  or  turning  away 


PSALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  137 

the  inlets  of  temptation ;  and  0  that  instead  of  being  so 
alive  unto  sin,  I  were  made  alive  unto  God,  and  to  the 
righteousness  which  He  loves  !  Let  me  dedicate  myself 
unto  Thee,  and  be  stablished  in  every  good  word  and 
work,  and  may  I  see  Thy  way  clearly  before  me.  Turn 
away  from  me,  0  Grod,  the  reproach  which  I  fear — a  fear 
wherewith  even  now  Thou  art  exercising  me,  perhaps  in 
judgment  for  my  past  sins ;  but  let  me  be  assured  a  good 
judgment,  and  may  good  come  from  it  to  my  soul.  I 
long  to  be  as  I  ought.  Set  me  right,  0  God,  and  give  me 
a  just  and  quick  sense  of  my  obligations  thereto. 

41-48. — 0  God,  confer  on  me  Thy  mercies,  and  let  me 
trust  in  Thy  word ;  and  thus  armed,  let  me  be  able  to 
turn  away  the  reproach  of  my  fellows.  Teach  me  how  to 
answer  when  there  is  a  strife  of  tongues.  May  Thy  word 
dwell  in  me  richly  in  all  wisdom.  May  it  never  fail  me, 
but  in  every  hour  of  necessity  may  I  be  ready  to  give  an 
answer  to  every  man.  Let  me  have  the  hope,  both  of 
glory  in  heaven  and  grace  upon  earth,  according  to  Thy 
testimonies ;  and  thus  shall  I  be  enabled  to  keep  Thy  law 
for  ever  and  ever — ^that  is,  both  here  in  time,  and  hereafter 
in  eternity — even  the  law  of  love,  which  is  a  law  of  liber- 
ty ;  that  law  to  which  I  aspire  with  the  earnest  expecta- 
tion of  being  delivered  from  bondage,  and  translated  into 
the  glorious  liberty  of  the  children  of  God.  Thus  fortified 
and  upheld,  let  me  not  be  ashamed  of  the  testimony  of 
Christ,  even  before  the  great  and  the  learned  of  this 
world.  Above  all  may  I  love  the  work  of  obedience ;  and 
in  virtue  of  the  new  taste  given  to  me,  let  duty  be  my 
delight  and  my  best  loved  employment.  And  let  not  only 
my  heart  and  mind  be  engaged  in  Thy  service,  delighting 
therein,  and  meditating  thereon ;  but  let  my  hands,  the 


138  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxix. 

whole  of  the  outer  man,  be  put  into  requisition — that  I 
may  glorify  the  Lord  with  my  body  too,  as  well  as  my  soul 
and  spirit. 

49-56. — Let  my  hope  rest  on  the  actual  word ;  and  let 
me  plead  for  Grod's  fulfilment  of  it,  His  own  actual  decla- 
ration. Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  abound  in  this  hope  by  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  It  is  the  AYord  which  quickens 
and  comforts ;  and  let  me  here  refer  to  Dr.  Buchanan's 
precious  treatise  upon  affliction.  May  the  occupation  of  my 
mind  with  the  law,  and  the  magnitude  of  its  cognate  in- 
terests and  relations,  enable  me  to  brave  the  mortifications 
which  man  would  lay  upon  me,  and  to  rise  above  them. 
Let  me  learn  more  and  observe  more  of  the  ways  of  God 
in  history — regarding  all  history,  in  fact,  as  being  a  his- 
tory of  providence.  0  that  I  could  share  more  in  the 
abhorrence  here  expressed  for  that  which  is  evil ;  that  I 
felt  more  of  that  hatred  of  iniquity  which  is  felt  by  the 
great  Exemplar  of  all  righteousness  in  the  heavens.  I 
should  rank  verse  54  among  the  notable  sayings  of  Scrip- 
ture.— Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  delight  in  Thy  commandments, 
and  let  my  meditations  of  Thee  and  of  Thy  statutes  be 
SAveet  unto  my  soul.  Let  my  relish  for  the  law  of  God, 
and  my  practical  observance  thereof,  keep  pace  the  one 
with  the  other.  They  have  a  reciprocal  influence.  If  I 
have  pleasure  in  thinking  of  God's  law  in  the  night 
watches,  it  is  because  I  keep  God's  precepts. 

57-64. — Be  Thou  my  portion,  0  Lord,  and  the  strength 
of  my  heart ;  and  then  shall  I  not  be  dejected  by  the 
adversities  of  life,  not  even  by  the  desertion  of  friends ; 
and  so  will  I  be  saved  from  the  sorrow  of  this  world, 
which  worketh  death.  With  my  whole  heart  would  I 
entreat  Thy  favour — with  my  whole  soul  would  I  thirst 


PSALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  139 

after  Grod.  Lord,  give  me  to  renounce  the  old  man: 
hencefortli  may  all  things  become  new  with  me.  I  have 
little  time  to  lose.  Well  may  I  now  make  haste,  and 
turn  me  to  the  paths  of  righteousness.  0  may  Thy 
testimonies  be  more  to  me  than  all  the  riches  of  this 
world  ;  and  henceforth  let  the  rule  and  principle  of  my 
existence  be  the  will  of  Grod.  Let  me  commit  my  cause 
unto  God ;  and  know  what  it  is  to  rejoice  amid  the  worst 
tribulations  which  man  can  lay  upon  me.  Let  me  not 
forget  Thy  law  through  the  day ;  and  at  midnight  I  shall 
feel  gratitude  and  gladness.  The  same  connexion  is 
stated  in  verses  55  and  56. — Let  my  converse  henceforth 
be  with  the  excellent  of  the  earth — with  them  who  fear 
God.  I  want  to  have  the  whole  set  and  habit  of  my  life 
changed  towards  God  and  godliness.  Teach  me  Thy  sta- 
tutes, and  help  me  to  keep  them ;  and  let  me  rejoice  in 
the  fulness  of  Thine  innumerable  mercies. 

65-72. — My  God,  give  me  the  faith  that  overcometh, 
and  the  charity  that  endureth  all  things ;  and  this  Avill 
indeed  be  dealing  well  with  me,  whether  or  not  Thou 
removest  the  external  tribulation  wherewith  I  am  now 
exercised.  Let  me  well  understand  that  the  precepts  form 
essential  ingredients  of  sound  doctrine ;  and  that  belief 
reaches  to  commandments  as  well  as  truths.  The  com- 
mandment for  the  present  is  not  to  be  careful  about  many 
things,  or  any  thing,  but  to  cast  all  my  care  upon  God. 
My  afflictions  will  indeed  be  good  for  me  if  they  teach 
me  this  lesson,  and  loosen  my  affections  from  the  world. 
Teach  me,  in  Thy  goodness,  0  Lord,  both  to  know  and  to 

do  Thy  statutes The  first  clause  of  verse  68  is  a  nota- 

bile.  Let  not  the  provocations  of  calumny  draw  me  from 
Thy  good  word  and  way.    May  I  realize  the  experience 


140  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxrx. 

of  the  Apostle,  who  delighted  in  the  law  of  G-od  after  the 
inward  man.  0  may  this  be  the  fruit  of  my  affliction — 
that  I  learn  Thy  statutes.  There  is  a  moral  smart  in  my 
present  trial.  In  as  far  as  it  involves  the  loss  of  money, 
let  me  amply  console  myself  in  this — ^that  if  the  effect  of 
the  discipline  shall  be  that  I  learn  Thy  law,  this  will  be 
far  better  than  thousands  of  gold  and  silver.  Give  me 
even  now  to  taste  the  comforts  of  the  new  obedience  of 
the  Gospel. 

73-80. — The  first  clause  of  verse  73  is  also  a  notabile. — 
0  that  I  felt  as  I  ought  the  subordination  and  dependence 
of  myself,  as  a  thing  formed,  on  Him  who  formed  and 

fashioned  me How  often  are  the  commandments  of 

God  spoken  of  as  the  objects  not  of  our  practical  obser- 
vance alone,  but  of  our  understanding.  (See  Eph.  v.  1 7.) — 
Let  me  not  be  unwise,  but  understanding  what  the  will  of 
the  Lord  is.  Let  me  be  sound  in  the  statutes  of  the 
Lord,  having  a  right  intelligence,  as  well  as  maintaining 
a  practical  observance  of  them.  0  let  my  hope  be  in  Thy 
word  of  promise ;  and  let  me  not  be  ashamed  of  my  hope. 
. . .  Perfect,  if  it  be  Thy  blessed  will,  my  views  and  purposes 
in  regard  to  the  West  Port.  Let  the  religious  lookers  on 
have  cause  of  triumph  there.  Thou  art  pleased  to  exer- 
cise my  faith  and  patience  ;  but  let  me  trust  in  Thee,  who 
wilt  thus  exercise  me  in  faithfulness,  and  wilt  yet  comfort 
me  with  Thy  lovingkindness — so  as  that  my  confidence 
shall  not  be  put  to  shame.  I  look  unto  G-od.  Let  my  chief 
care  be  to  be  well  with  Thee.  Let  my  designs  and  doings 
be  ever  such  that  the  pious  and  the  good  would  rejoice  in 
their  prosperous  consummation,  and  none  be  mortified 
thereby  but  the  enemies  of  truth  and  righteousness. 

81-88. — My  soul  doth  faint  for  a  something  which  I 


PSALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  J41 

feel  I  have  not  got  liold  of ;  but  failing  mj  adequate  con- 
ception of  its  archetype  realities,  let  me  meanwhile  place 
reliance,  both  for  the  present  and  the  future,  upon  Thy 
word.  Assuredly  I  am  in  that  very  state  of  distance  and 
deficiency  which  the  psalmist  complains  of — a  longing  for 
what  I  have  not  attained,  for  a  comfort  and  confidence 
which  I  yet  am  short  of  I  may  well  be  compared  to  "  a 
bottle  in  the  smoke,''  in  virtue  of  the  obscuration  which 
lies  between  me  and  the  distant  unseen  objects  of  faith  ;  but 
how  admirably  in  keeping  is  such  a  state  with  the  resolved 
purpose  of  remembering  the  statutes  and  doing  them,  in 
the  train  of  which  doing  Christ  hath  promised  to  manifest 
Himself  (John  xiv.  21.)  The  objects  of  faith  in  the 
heavens  may  be  hidden  from  the  view  of  my  conceiving 
faculty ;  but  the  doings  upon  earth  are  matters  on  hand  • 
and  let  me  be  faithful  in  these,  even  till  my  light  shall  break 
forth  as  the  morning.     Thus  let  me  work  for  comfort  and 

clearness What  a  noble  text  is  verse  83,  and  let  it 

henceforth  be  one  of  my  notanda. — My  Grod,  in  the  midst 
of  injustice  and  hostile  machinations,  let  me  adhere  to 
Thee  with  firm  trust  and  purpose  of  heart.  Quicken  and 
enlighten  and  enlarge  me,  0  God ;  and  let  me  confide  in 
the  promises  given  to  them  who  obey. 

89-96. — This  accordance,  in  point  of  stability  and  sure- 
ness,  between  the  utterances  of  God's  word  and  the  ordi- 
nances or  laws  of  God's  world,  carries  a  precious  lesson 
along  with  it — teaching  us  to  rely,  with  as  great  secu- 
rity, on  the  fulfilment  of  Bible  promises  and  Bible  decla- 
rations as  on  the  constancy  of  Nature. — Let  me  be  as 
settled,  0  God,  in  the  tiiith  of  Thy  word  as  I  am  in  the 
anticipations  of  light  in  the  morning,  or  of  the  courses  of 
the  sun  and  moon  in  the  firmament.     Thus,  0  God,  thu3 


142  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxix. 

may  I  be  settled  and  grounded  in  the  hope  of  the  Gospel, 
so  as  never  to  be  moved  away  from  it.  Against  all  the 
likelihoods  and  fears  of  nature  let  me  ever  maintain  a 
steadfast  faith  in  the  faithfulness  of  God.  Tlius  fortified, 
let  me,  amid  the  afflictions  of  life,  have  recourse  to  the 
book  of  Thy  law — that  in  the  occupations  and  exercises 
of  the  new  obedience,  and  in  the  prospects  of  a  land  of 
rest  and  rejoicing,  I  may  be  saved  from  despair,  and 
quickened  to  other  desires  than  such  as  Thou  mightest 
be  pleased  to  disappoint  and  mortify  in  the  administra- 
tion of  a  wholesome  discipline.  Take  me,  0  God,  as  one 
of  Thine  own.  Form  me  to  Thyself  Give  me  more  dili- 
gence in  seeking  Thee  and  Thy  precepts.  Let  me  be 
shielded  by  faith  and  charity  against  the  hostile  or  the 
unjust,  who  seek  to  overbear  and  oppress  me.  0  let  me 
consider  the  precepts  of  the  New  Dispensation,  and  put 
its  blessed  injunction  of  patience  and  peace  and  love, 
even  to  adversaries,  into  full  accomplishment  and  effect. 
...  To  "  have  seen  an  end  of  all  perfection/'  is  to  have 
tried  the  world,  as  Solomon  in  Ecclesiastes  says  he  had 
done,  and  learned  its  vanity ;  but  along  with  this,  let  me 
learn  also  the  fulness  of  God's  word,  which  provides  a  rule 
for  all  cases,  and  a  remedy  against  all  evils. 

97-104. — My  God,  let  me  ever  meditate  on  Thy  law, 
because  I  love  it,  and  then  shall  I  have  great  peace — 
nothing  will  offend  me  ;  then  shall  I  have  the  life  and 
peace  of  those  who  are  spiritually  minded.  Surely  the 
right  moral  would  lead  to  a  far  sounder  intellectual  state. 
And  how  much  wiser  would  it  make  me  than  those  whose 
wisdom  lies  in  skill  to  overreach  and  deceive.  By  dwell- 
ing on  Thy  testimonies,  I  become  wiser  than  all  the 
teachers  of  secular  learning ;  by  keeping  Thy  precepts,  I 


PSALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  143 

get  more  understanding  than  was  possessed  bj  the  mere 
scholars  and  discoverers  of  former  days.  Let  me  be 
most  observant  of  Thy  word,  most  studious  in  the  avoid- 
ance of  all  that  is  forbidden  by  it.  Let  me  not  depart, 
0  God,  from  Thy  counsel,  by  walking  in  counsel  of  my 
own.  But  may  Thy  spirit  be  ever  present  with  His  les- 
sons, and  keep  them  in  my  remembrance.  And  give  me 
to  feel  the  sweetness  of  religion,  the  pleasantness  of  all 
its  ways,  the  peace  that  is  in  its  paths  —  The  great  les- 
son of  this  passage  is  the  wisdom  of  piety — the  connexion 
between  the  good  and  the  true.  Every  evil  way  is  a  false 
way.  Therefore  let  me  hate  it  with  a  perfect  hatred — 
abhorring  the  evil,  cleaving  to  the  good. 

March,  1846. 
105-112. — May  the  entrance  of  Thy  words  give  me  light, 

0  Lord Verse  105  is  one  of  the  notables  of  Scripture. — 

Let  me  dedicate  myself  to  Thy  service ;  and  bind  me  to  that 
covenant  which  is  ordered  in  all  things,  and  sure.  Lord, 
quicken  me  in  the  affliction  that  now  lies  upon  me.  Make 
me  alive  unto  Thy  word  ;  and  then  will  the  cares  of  an  evil 
world  lie  light  upon  my  heart.  Accept,  0  God,  of  the  free- 
will-offerings of  my  mouth — the  aspirations  which  I  lift  up 
spontaneously  and  habitually.  My  God,  sustain  these  as 
prayers ;  and  give  me  the  comfort  of  knowing  that  i\iQj 
are  prompted  by  a  spirit  of  grace  and  supplication  which 
Thou  hast  poured  upon  me.  0  teach  me,  in  return  for 
the  frequent  up-looking  to  Thee  for  my  guidance  in  the 

various  circumstances  of  life "My  soul  being  continually 

in  my  hand,''  signifies  the  precariousness  of  the  psalmist's 
life,  as  ready  at  all  times  to  be  snatched  from  him  by  his 
enemies.     Let  not  the  worst  of  dangers  so  engross  me  as 


144  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxix. 

to  sliut  out,  or  lead  me  to  err  from  Thy  law.  May  Thy 
word  be  my  constant  companion,  in  which  is  all  my  joy, 
and  to  which  are  all  my  inclinations. 

113-120. — Deliver  me,  0  Grod,  from  the  power  of  vain 
thoughts,  from  the  imaginations  of  licentiousness,  from 
the  broodings  of  felt  or  fancied  injustice.  May  I  turn 
from  these  to  the  study  of  Thy  law  ;  and  then  great  will  be 
my  peace.  Be  thou  my  refuge,  0  God ;  and  when  Thy 
manifestations  fail  me,  let  me,  though  in  darkness  and 
having  no  light,  still  trust  in  Thy  word.  Let  me  shun 
the  fellowships  of  the  ungodly ;  and  observe  the  law  of 
God  in  all  its  spirit  and  extent,  even  though  I  should  be- 
come very  peculiar  thereby.  0  Lord,  put  not  my  confi- 
dence— the  confidence  I  have  in  Thine  own  sayings — put 
it  not  to  shame.  Let  me  be  upheld  by  Thy  strength 
along  the  walk  of  obedience,  and  then  my  footsteps  shall 
not  slip.  But  let  me  not  count  on  Thy  sustaining  grace, 
if  I  respect  not  Thy  statutes,  but  deviate  tKerefrom,  and 
handle  Thy  testimonies  deceitfully.  Let  me  have  respect 
unto  Thy  dealings  with  the  wicked ;  and  let  me  tremble 
lest  theirs  should  be  my  portion  also.  Let  all  the  appli- 
ances of  Thy  word — its  invitations,  its  promises,  its  terrors 
— have  each  their  due  and  right  effect  upon  my  soul.  Let 
Thy  threatenings  drive  me  from  tke  fellowships  of  the 
world.  Let  Thy  blessed  offer  of  welcome  and  good-will 
draw  me  into  fellowship  with  the  Father,  and  with  the 
Son,  and  with  the  household  of  God.  Then,  after  the 
terrors  of  Thy  law  have  done  their  part  in  persuading 
me,  the  faith  of  Thy  Gospel,  working  by  love  to  God  and 
goodness,  will  do  its  part  in  imparting  peace  and  joy  to 
mv  soul,  and  inspiring  me  with  delight  in  the  testimonies 
of  God 


PSALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  145 

121-128. — Give  me  the  spirit  of  equity,  0  Lord,  that 
on  this  ground  I  may  ask,  and  do  ask,  for  deliverance 
from  them  who  would  oppress  me.  I  will  devolve  my 
cause  upon  Thee.  Save  me  from  the  insolence  and  injus- 
tice of  men.  0  Lord,  I  long  to  be  found  in  the  righteous- 
ness of  Christ,  and  to  have  a  firm  hold  of  His  salvation  ; 
but  let  me  well  observe  how  much  the  knowledge  and  the 
observance  of  Thy  statutes  have  to  do  with  these  high 
privileges.  Let  me,  therefore,  even  from  the  outset,  and 
before  I  count  myself  to  have  attained,  give  me  to  esteem 
highly  the  work  and  the  ways  of  obedience,  and  to  shun 
with  abhorrence  all  that  is  false  and  evil.  Give  me  to  un- 
derstand and  do  Thy  plain  biddings ;  and  this  will  open 
the  way  for  my  understanding  of  higher  mysteries.  May 
Thy  precepts  every  day  become  dearer  and  more  delightful 
to  me.  Thus  may  I  escape  the  evil  that  is  to  come ;  for 
surely,  0  God,  we  may  well  look  for  Thy  judgments  in  an 
age  when  Thy  law  is  so  openly  violated.  Will  not  the 
public  and  legalized  desecration  of  the  Sabbath  bring 
speedily  upon  us  a  day  of  vengeance  ? — Let  me  maintain 
my  steadfastness,  and  be  counted  worthy  to  stand  before 
the  Son  of  Man  at  His  coming  and  appearance  in  the 
world. 

129-136. — Open  Thou  mine  eyes  to  behold  the  wonder- 
ful or  admirable  things  which  are  contained  in  the  Book 
of  Thy  law  and  testimony,  and  let  me  not  be  satisfied 
with  admiring  them ;  but  make  this  the  reason  for  also 

observing  them Verse  130  ranks  high  among  the  no- 

tanda  of  Scripture.  We  have  here  the  self-evidencing 
power  of  the  Bible. — Give  me  through  it,  0  Lord,  of  that 
wisdom  which  Thou  revealest  unto  babes.  Truly  I  long 
for  brighter  assurances  and  larger  manifestations.     Let 

VOL.  III.  Q 


146  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxix. 

me  read  and  pray  for  them.  Guide  me  in  the  way  of  Thy 
commandments.  Take  pity  on  my  darkness  and  helpless- 
ness, 0  Lord.  And  in  the  ahsence  of  clear  spiritual  views, 
may  my  steps — at  least  my  palpable  and  everyday  steps — 
be  ordered  according  to  the  plain  directions  of  Thy  word ; 
and  save  me  from  every  sin  that  doth  easily  beset,  and 

would  lord  it  over  me Yerse  133  is  also  one  of  the 

Scripture  notanda. — Deliver  me,  0  God,  from  the  injus- 
tice which  I  fear ;  but  however  this  may  be,  let  nothing 
so  offend  or  seduce  me  as  that  I  shall  lose  my  hold  of  Thy 
statutes  ;  and  thus  may  I  be  shone  upon  at  last  by  the 
light  of  Thy  countenance.  Teach  and  enlighten  me 
from  first  to  last ;  and  0  endow  me  with  the  right  sensi- 
bilities as  well  as  the  right  perceptions  ;  for  where,  alas  ! 
is  my  grief  or  affliction,  because  of  the  world's  ungodli- 
ness ? 

137-144. — My  God,  placed  as  I  am  amid  the  conflicting 
judgments  of  my  fellows,  let  me  look  upwardly  to  Thee 
and  to  Thy  righteous  judgments,  and  be  still.  Let  me 
repose  in  the  faithfulness  of  Thy  word.  But  0  how  little 
am  I  jealous  for  God,  or  with  a  godly  jealousy.  They  are 
the  injuries  inflicted  upon  self  which  afl'ect  me.  My  God, 
give  me  to  feel  more  for  Thine  honour,  and  less  for  the 
concerns  or  the  cares  of  my  own  selfishness.  Let  Thy 
word  be  my  treasure.  Let  me  love  it  for  its  freedom  from 
all  the  alloy  of  weakness  or  imperfection  of  any  sort ;  and 
therefore  more  to  be  desired  than  gold,  even  the  finest 
gold.  Save  me  from  all  undue  aff'ection  for  this  world's 
wealth ;  and  yet  let  me  not  be  despised  because  of  my 
excessive  facility  or  the  fear  of  man.  Give  me  to  attach 
myself  to  that  which  is  everlasting  ;  and  let  it  be  my 
portion.     If  I  but  love  Thy  law,  nothing  will  ofiend  me. 


PSALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  147 

0  that  I  could  delight  myself  therewith,  even  in  the  midst 
of  tribulations.  Give  me  the  victoiy  over  my  present 
difficulties  and  trials — a  serene  confidence  in  Thyself, 
and  a  resolute  clinging  unto  Him  in  whose  fnlness  I 
am  invited  to  rejoice.  It  is  exceedingly  wrong  to  he 
thus  depressed  and  distracted  by  the  unexpected  treat- 
ment of  men  whom  I  trusted,  when  I  have  such  a  God  for 
my  help  and  refuge.  Give  me,  0  Lord,  a  right  spiritual 
understanding  ;  and  then  shall  I  be  alive  unto  Thyself, 
and  dead  unto  the  world  and  its  evils. 

145-152. — Let  my  ciy  unto  God  be  at  all  times  with 
my  whole  heart ;  and  in  all  circumstances  may  it  be  my 
firm  resolve  that  I  shall  keep  His  precepts.  Save  me,  0 
God,  from  my  present  perplexities.  Let  me  be  extricated 
from  these,  and,  undistracted  by  this  world,  let  my  inces- 
sant meditation,  night  and  day,  be  upon  Thee  and  upon 
Thy  word.  Thou  knowest,  0  God,  how  much  I  stand  in 
need  of  Thy  compassionate  regards.  Keep  me  right  amid 
the  difficulties  which  now  encompass  me ;  and  let  not  the 
urgency  either  of  this  world's  interests  or  provocations, 
drive  me  from  the  contemplations  and  higher  cares  of 
eternity.  0  that  I  were  more  quick  and  alive  to  the  things 
of  faith,  and  then  sense  and  time  would  have  less  effect 
upon  me ;  and  instead  of  being  kept  awake  by  breedings 
on  the  injustice  or  adverse  disposition  of  man,  the  Word 
of  God,  and  the  great  and  wondrous  things  therein,  then 
would  keep  me  awake.  "When  hemmed  in  by  enemies 
may  I  think  of  the  friend  above  who  is  nearer  to  me  than 
they,  and  sticketh  closer  to  me  than  a  brother.  Let  me 
repose  at  all  times  on  the  stability  and  truth  of  Thy 
blessed  testimonies.  Give  me,  0  Lord,  a  part  and  an  in- 
terest in  this  as  most  suitable  to  my  actual  circumstances, — 


148  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxix. 

"  The  troubles  that  afflict  the  just 
In  number  many  be, 
But  yet  at  length  out  of  them  all 
The  Lord  shall  set  them  free." 

153-160. — I  need  deliverance  from  a  special  affliction  or 
trial  at  this  moment.  Let  not  its  urgencies,  0  God,  expel 
Thy  word  from  my  recollections  and  regards.  I  have  also 
a  cause  to  plead.  Carry  me  through  it,  0  God,  in  safety ; 
and  let  me  all  the  while  be  alive  to  Thy  will  as  made 

known  in  Thy  word How  instructive  to  be  told  that 

salvation  is  far  from  us,  if  God's  statutes  are  not  cared 
for  or  sought  after  ! — Let  not  a  misunderstood  orthodoxy 
seduce  or  turn  me  from  these.  The  mercy  of  God  is  the 
fountain-head  of  regeneration.  (Titus  iii.  5.) — According 
to  that  mercy  do  Thou  revive  and  quicken  me.  I  am 
beset  with  adverse  interests  and  wills  :  0  let  me  not  de- 
cline from  charity  and  justice  in  the  midst  of  this  turmoil. 
But  0  what  a  discovery  of  myself  to  find  that  I  am  more 
grieved  because  of  their  injuries  to  me  than  because  of 
their  non-observance  of  Thy  law.  Create  the  right  sensi- 
bility within  me ;  and  give  me  the  love  of  thy  precepts, 
for  I  can  more  confidently  say  that  I  desire  to  love  them 
than  that  I  love  them  actually.  Quicken  me,  therefore, 
0  Lord,  so  as  that  I  may  delight  in  Thy  law  after  the 
inner  man.  And  let  me  repose  on  the  stability  of  Thy 
word,  which  will  hold  true  from  everlasting  to  everlasting ; 
and  the  power  of  which  over  me  should  surely  carry  it 
over  the  power  of  that  world  which  passeth  away. 

161-168. — Let  me  "  not  fear  what  man  can  do  unto  me  ;'' 
but  let  me  stand  in  awe  of  God  and  sin  not.  May  the 
fear  of  Him  supplant  every  other  fear,  and  the  love  of 
Him  subordinate  every  other  love.  May  the  precious 
Bible  be  at  all  times  my  treasure^  the  joy  of  my  heart,  the 


PSALM  cxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  149 

consolation  and  delight  of  mj  soul I  would  make  a 

notabile  of  verse  1 62. — Let  me  liate  the  remotest  tendency 
to  falsehood  ;  and  let  simplicity  and  godly  sincerity  mark 
all  my  correspondence.  Grive  me,  0  Lord,  such  a  love  to 
Thy  law  that  nothing  may  either  disturb  my  peace  or 
offend  me.  0  that  I  could  attain  to  the  frame  of  habitual 
praise  !  May  Thy  righteous  judgments  evoke  the  gratitude 

and  admiration  of  my  soul What  a  high  place  belongs 

to  verse  165  among  the  notabilia  or  memorabilia  of  Scrip- 
ture !  and  verse  166  is  one  of  the  most  important  that 
can  be  adduced  for  the  theology  which  advocates  the  in- 
separable alliance  of  faith  and  works,  ab  initio,  or  from 
the  very  outset  of  the  Christian  life. — Lord,  let  me  at  once 
and  from  this  time  forward,  ever  hope  for  Thy  salvation 
and  do  Thy  commandments.  Let  my  observance  extend 
to  all  Thy  testimonies,  be  they  doctrinal  or  preceptive,  and 
if  I  but  keep  them  entire,  I  shall  exceedingly  love  and 
rejoice  in  them.  May  all  Thy  word  be  before  me,  even  as 
all  my  ways  are  before  Thee,  0  God. 

169-176. — This  concluding  stanza  presents  us  with  the 
last  and  closing  importunities  of  the  psalmist ;  and  we 
may  look  here  for  the  objects  to  which  his  aspirations 
and  wishes  were  chiefly  directed.  And  so  it  is  with  a 
beseeching  earnestness  that  in  this  final  passage  he  seeks 
for  the  understanding  of  God's  word,  and  for  the  delivery 
from  all  evil  which  it  promises  to  the  soul.  Mark  well  in 
these  verses  the  connexion  between  plain  and  palpable 
obedience  on  the  one  hand,  and  on  the  other  the  higher 
spiritual  accomplishments  of  the  religious  character.  The 
utterance  of  praise,  for  example,  by  the  lips,  comes  after 
the  being  schooled  into  the  commandments.  The  choice 
of  the  precepts,  the  prayers  for  help  to  perform  them,  the 


150  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxx. 

being  taught  not  only  to  know  the  statutes  but  I  ap- 
prehend also  to  do  them — these,  if  they  do  not  precede 
must  at  least  go  along  with  our  earnest  desires  for  salva- 
tion, and  our  delight  in  God's  law — the  law  of  our  duty 
from  the  first,  and  aftery\^ards  our  most  congenial  and  best 
loved  employment.  It  is  thus  that  the  judgments,  com- 
prehending all  the  rules  and  principles  of  His  most  right- 
eous administration,  are  helpful  to  the  life  of  the  soul, 
and  to  the  higher  functions  and  exercises  of  spiritual 
religion. — Seek  me  out,  then,  0  God,  and  restore  to  me 
the  joys  of  Thy  salvation,  while  I  am  seeking  the  way  of 
life,  and  bearing  in  mind  the  requirements  of  that  law 

which  is  a  schoolmaster  for  bringing  unto  Christ Let 

me  remark,  on  parting  with  this  distinguished  psalm, 
that  it  is  more  remarkable  for  the  intense  and  emphatic 
weight  of  its  few  great  lessons  than  for  the  number  or 
variety  of  these. 

Psalm  cxx. — Thou,  0  God,  art  a  very  present  help  in 
time  of  trouble.  Let  my  ciy,  then,  ascend  unto  Thee  at 
all  times.  Thou  hearer  of  prayer,  deliver  me  more  especi- 
ally from  the  falsehood  of  lying  tongues ;  but  0  may  all 
the  semblances  of  deceit  to  which  I  am  exposed,  and  all 
the  suspicions  which  the  conduct  of  those  whom  I  at  one 
time  trusted  might  awaken  in  my  bosom — let  not  these 
extinguish  the  principle  of  charity  within  me.  My  God, 
save  me  from  so  great  a  transgression.  It  is  not  for  me 
to  lift  the  hand  of  vengeance ; — "  Vengeance  is  mine,  saith 
the  Lord  ;''  but  I  do  feel  in  a  land  of  strangers.  The  at- 
mosphere that  gets  up  among  the  competitions  of  interest 
is  most  uncongenial  to  me.  I  long  for  peace  and  confi- 
dence between  man  and  man.     I  never  could  breathe  with 


PSALM  cxxir.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS  151 

comfort  in  tlie  stormy  element  of  debate  ;  and  more  espe- 
cially wlien  tlie  hateful  ingredient  of  money  or  selfislmess 
in  its  grossness  formed  tlie  matter  of  controversy  betwixt 
tlie  parties.     I  pray  for  tlie  cliarity  tliat  seeketli  not  its 

0A\T1. 

Psalm  cxxi. — Wliatever  occasion  sliall  be  conjectured 
for  tliis  celebrated  and  very  precious  psalm,  it  is  a  psalm 
for  all  ages — whether  as  sung  by  the  pilgrims  Zioiiward 
from  all  parts  of  Israel,  to  their  great  public  festivals, 
when  travelling  to  the  hills  that  were  round  about  Jeru- 
salem, or  for  the  Christian  pilgrim  of  the  present  day 
looking  upward  to  God,  and  onward  to  eternity. — 0  that 
I  could  thus  cast  my  care  and  confidence  on  the  God  of 
heaven  and  earth,  and  that  I  felt  the  security  which  is 
here  expressed  in  His  ever  wakeful  and  all  superintending 
Providence.  My  God,  I  look  up  to  Thee  for  guidance  and 
protection  in. all  my  movements.  He  will  ward  off  from 
me  all  external  violence.  He  will  uphold  my  goings  out 
and  comings  in.  He  will  enable  me  to  steer  aright  in  the 
midst  of  plotting  and  artful  adversaries  ;  and  0  how  ample 
His  guardianship  is — even  from  this  time  and  for  ever- 
more !  Let  me  include,  therefore,  my  spiritual  safety  in 
the  promise  that  He  "will  preserve  me  from  all  evil:'' 
and  indeed  it  is  so  expressly.  The  "  preservation  from 
all  evir'  implies  mainly  and  pre-eminently  a  preservation 
from  all  those  evil  influences  which  war  against  the  soul. 
''  He  shall  preserve  thy  soul.'' — Present  me  faultless,  0 
God,  before  the  presence  of  Thy  glory.  (Jude,  verse  24.) 

Psalm  cxxil — A  fine  ecclesiastical  psalm,  and  calcu- 
lated to  foster  a  spirit  of  patriotism  among  priests  and 


152  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxxui. 

worshippers  towards  their  Church.  The  critics,  from  the 
structure  of  this  and  many  other  psalms,  conclude  of  them 
that  they  must  have  been  performed  in  parts,  which  they 
distribute  among  the  various  interlocutors. — Let  my  de- 

ight  be  more,  0  God,  than  heretofore  in  the  exercises  of 
social  and  public  worship ;  and  the  want  of  this  forms  a 

ad  defect  in  the  habit  of  my  mind In  times  of  general 

repair  towards  the  great  metropolis  of  their  religious  ser- 
vices, this  psalm  must  have  been  a  frequent  exercise  with 
the  children  of  Israel . . . ."  The  testimony  of  Israel''  might 
be  translated  the  "congregations  of  Israel'' — a  more  per- 
dnent  meaning  in  verse  4.  One  can  imagine  the  taste 
md  enjoyment  wherewith  this  psalm  would  be  repeated, 
even  along  their  journey,  by  the  travellers  Zionward — 
coming  from  all  the  tribes  with  their  offerings  of  gratitude. 
One  can  enter  into  the  affection  that  would  be  felt  for 
Jerusalem,  and  the  elevating  effect  of  these  great  periodi- 
cal occasions  on  the  collective  mind  of  the  Hebrews. — For 
the  sake  of  family  and  neighbours,  let  me  seek  for  the 
good  of  the  Church,  and  ever  pray  for  her  prosperity  and 
peace. 

Psalm  cxxiil — There  is  great  verisimilitude  in  the  sup- 
position that  this  was  a  psalm  for  the  Babylonish  captives, 
who  longed  for  deliverance,  and  looked  waitingly  and  wist- 
fully to  God,  that  He  might  have  mercy  upon  them.  They 
'ifted  up  their  eyes  to  Him  who  dwelt  in  heaven  above, 
tmploring  His  protection,  and  that  He  would  rescue  them 
from  their  earthly  tyrants.  Matthew  Henry  is  copious  on 
the  expression  of  the  masters'  and  mistress'  hand,  to  which 
tiervants  look  for  guidance  and  supply,  and  defence,  and 
correction.     So  did  these  unhappy  Israelites  look  to  the 


PSALM  cxxiv.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  153 

higliest  Master  of  all,  amid  the  contempt  and  cruelty  to 
which  they  were  subjected — the  scorning  of  those  who 
mocked  at  them  and  their  religion.  (Psalm  cxxxvii.) 
And  this,  too,  should  be  our  habitual  attitude — the  atti- 
tude of  dependence  and  humble  expectancy. — Enable  me, 
0  God,  to  realize  it.  Let  me  be  ever  looking  upwardly  to 
Thee.  Incliiie  the  heart  of  him  with  whom  I  am  now  at 
variance  to  penitence  and  peace.  And,  0  my  God,  save 
me  from  the  agitations  of  a  sore  controversy. 

Psalm  cxxiv. — A  "song  of  degrees"  is  said  to  be  a  march- 
song,  implying,  therefore,  a  musical  procession  and  concert. 
This  one,  in  particular,  has  been  ascribed  to  David,  after 
the  victories  which  secured  him  the  throne  at  Jerusalem. 
It  is  finely  expressive  of  the  power  and  formidableness 
of  his  enemies,  and  of  his  danger  in  the  midst  of  them — 
a  danger,  his  rescue  from  which  he  ascribes  to  the  Lord 
being  upon  his  side.  Many  rose  up  against  him  previous 
to  his  settlement  in  the  monarchy  of  all  Israel,  who  would 
have  swallowed  him  up,  even  as  the  waters  of  the  Red  Sea 
would  have  swallowed  up  the  Israelites,  had  it  not  been 
for  the  mighty  and  miraculous  power  which  conducted 
them  in  safety  to  the  opposite  side,  and  so  made  good  for 
them  their  escape  from  the  enemies,  who  fell  into  the 
destruction  themselves  in  which  they  sought  to  involve 

the  people  of  God One  can  imagine  the  triumph  and 

the  enthusiasm  wherewith  the  performers  would  join  in 
this  joyful  celebration,  and  with  what  heartfelt  felicitation 
and  gratitude  they  would  lift  up  their  voices  to  Him  in 
whom  their  help  was. — My  God,  give  me  to  experience  a 
like  deliverance  from  becoming  the  prey  of  human  injus- 
tice, or  falling  into  the  snare  which  artful  men  may  hav© 

G  2 


154  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxxvi. 

laid  for  me.     For  tliis  I  pray  now ;  and  0  give  me  for  this 
to  praise  Thee  hereafter. 

Psalm  cxxv. — This  is  also  conceived  to  be  a  warlike 
march-song,  composed  in  the  days  of  Jehoshaphat,  when 
he  returned  to  Jerusalem  victorious  and  safe  from  his 
enemies.  The  lesson,  however  this  may  he,  is  of  general 
and  pennanent  application What  privileges  are  an- 
nexed to  our  simply  trusting  in  God !  Let  me  so  trust 
that  I  never  may  be  moved.  Lord,  Thou  knowest  what 
it  is  that  now  agitates  and  tries  me ;  yet  I  would  cast 
all  this  care,  and  all  my  confidence,  on  God — trusting 
in  Him  with  my  whole  heart,  and  not  afraid  of  what 
man  can  do  unto  me.  May  I  be  compassed  about  ^-ith 
Thy  faA^our  as  with  a  shield.  May  my  citizenship  be  in 
Heaven,  even  in  the  Jerusalem  that  is  above  ;  and  then 
shall  the  Lord  be  round  about  me,  even  as  the  mountains 
are  round  about  the  Jerusalem  below.  Then  the  rod  of 
the  wicked  may  come  upon  me,  but  it  will  not  rest  upon 
me.  The  iron  hand  of  injustice  may  be  lifted  up  to  cast  me 
down,  but  it  will  not  destroy  me.  Let  not,  however,  any 
measure  or  degree  of  successful  oppression  tempt  me  from 
righteousness  to  sin.  Make  me  good,  and  put  truth  into 
my  inward  parts  ;  and  then,  when  my  heart  condemns  me 
not,  shall  I  ask  with  confidence  for  peace  and  protection 
at  Thy  hands,  and  shall  not  be  disappointed.  Then  may 
I  tiTist  in  the  Lord  ;  and  He  will  not  remove  me  from  the 
place  of  useful  influence  that  I  now  occupy,  but  cause  me 
to  abide  and  to  prosper  therein. 

Psalm  cxxvi. — This  psalm  is  doubtless  the  song  of  re- 
turned or  returning  captives.     We  can  well  imagine  how 


PSALM  cxxvii.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  155 

the  decree  of  Cyrus  would  both  astound  and  delight  the 
families  of  Israel.  Even  the  heathen  who  had  before 
mocked  and  persecuted  them,  spoke  the  language  of  re- 
spect and  congratulation — doing  homage  to  that  sacred 
name  which  thev  had  been  in  the  habit  of  blaspheming — 
even  they  ascribing  their  deliverance  to  the  interposition 
of  their  God,  whom  they  acknowledged  as  the  author  of 
the  great  things  which  had  been  done  for  them,  to  which 
the  Jews  most  heartily  responded,  and  for  Avhich  they 
were  so  grateful  and  glad  —  Yerse  4  is  variously  inter- 
preted. Some  conceive  of  the  "  south''  that  it  is  the  south 
wind,  which,  blowing  on  the  snowy  heights  at  the  elevated 
sources  of  rivers,  reinforced  the  waters,  even  as  the  Israel- 
ites were  swollen  in  number  by  every  accession  to  the 
multitude  on  their  march  to  their  own  land.  However 
this  be,  there  is  no  mistaking  of  the  precious  and  con- 
solatory lesson — that  affliction  of  the  right  kind,  and 
rightly  improved,  issues  at  length  in  permanent  good  and 
enjoyment,  and  so  is  a  blessing  in  disguise. — May  such  be 
my  finding,  0  God.  But  let  my  sorrow  not  be  of  this 
world,  which  worketh  death,  but  that  sorrow  after  a  godly 
sort,  which  worketh  salvation. 

Psalm  cxxvii. — The  opening  sentiment  of  this  psalm  is 
the  vanity  of  all  our  intense  care  in  the  acquisition  or 
accomplishment  of  any  object — seeing  that  without  the 
Divine  co-operation  and  blessing  all  will  be  fruitless.  It 
is  utterly  in  vain  that  we  should  labour  for  that  on  which 
our  heaii:  is  set,  so  as  to  leave  ourselves  neitlier  rest 
nor  comfort,  if  the  counsel  of  the  Lord,  which  alone  can 
stand,  be  adverse  to  our  views.  Duties  are  ours,  events 
are  God's ;  and  the  way  is  to  do  these  duties  free  from 


156  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       psalm  cxxviu. 

anxiety,  because  trusting  in  Him ;  and  He  will  give  us  all 
that  He  knoweth  we  have  need  of — and,  to  the  bargain, 
that  peace  which  passeth  all  understanding.  Let  us  only 
have  His  love,  and  then  may  we  repose  in  the  confidence 

that  all  is  well The  title  of  this  psalm  connects  it  with 

Solomon,  Jedidiah  the  beloved ;  and  it  is  regarded  by 
many  as  a  marriage  song  for  him  ;  and  so  the  promise  of 
a  family,  which  in  these  days  was  regarded  as  a  blessing, 
in  proportion  to  its  largeness  and  vigour — the  vigour  of 
youth. 

Psalm  cxxviil — This  psalm  is  supposed  to  have  been 
an  address  from  the  priest  to  an  offerer,  either  on  the 
occasion  of  his  marriage,  or  on  his  payment  of  tithes.  I 
pray  for  the  blessedness  of  the  religious  and  the  good. 
Let  me  stand  in  awe  and  sin  not,  but  walk  in  the  ways  of 
Grod.  The  temporal  good  things  which  are  here  promised 
belong  to  the  earlier  economy ;  but  let  me  not  despise 
these,  seeing  that  the  declaration  still  holds  true — "  that 
godliness  is  profitable  unto  all  things.'' — Let  me  have 
the  counterpart  spiritual  blessings.  Let  me  be  filled  with 
the  fruits  of  righteousness.  As  the  effect  of  my  labour  in 
the  service  of  God,  let  the  love  of  God  be  shed  abroad  in 
my  heai*t  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  And  0  give  me  the  com- 
fort of  a  prosperous  family — prosperous  in  the  truest  sense 
of  the  word — their  souls  prospering  and  in  health.  And 
beside  the  good  of  my  own  household,  let  me  see  the  good 
of  Thy  Church — the  good  of  Jerusalem,  ere  that  this  toil- 
some life  shall  have  come  to  an  end.  Let  me  do  all  for 
the  West  Port  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  that  He  may  coun- 
tenance and  bless  that  enterprise.  0  may  prosperity 
and  peace  rest  upon  it ;  and  may  what  we  now  do  there 


PSALM  cxxx.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  157 

prove  a  blessing  to  many  successive  generations.  Send, 
0  God,  tlie  needful  grace  from  tlie  upper  sanctuary,  and 
all  will  be  right. 

Psalm  cxxix. — This  is  conceived  by  some  to  have  been 
the  song  of  the  Jews  who  accompanied  Ezra  from  Babylon 
to  Jerusalem  ;  and  seems  applicable  enough  to  the  circum- 
stances of  that  event.  Often,  indeed,  had  the  children  of 
Israel  been  afflicted,  but  not  oftener  than  they  had  sinned ; 
though  the  instruments  of  their  chastisement  were  not 
justified  in  the  cruelties  and  exultations  which  they  in- 
dulged against  these  persecuted  people.  But  God  punished 
them  in  measure,  and  took  compassion  on  them,  while  He 
inflicted  vengeance  on  their  enemies.  There  is  a  lesson 
to  us  here. — Let  us  not  fret  because  of  evil-doers.  All 
will  be  redressed  and  rectified  at  the  last.  They  who  hate 
the  good  and  the  upright  will  at  length  be  brought  low. 
The  righteous  Judge  above  concerns  Himself  with  the 
doings  of  men,  and  will  decide  equitably  between  them. 
And  He  is  at  the  door — a  consideration  that  might  well 
make  us  patient  under  injuries.  To  this  patience,  0  God, 
may  I  add  charity.  (2  Pet.  i.  7.)  The  "  grass  on  the  house- 
tops'' was  of  sickly  growth It  marks  the  immutability  of 

eastern  customs,  that  the  salutations  here  spoken  of  pre- 
vail there  to  this  day.  The  neglect  of  these  is  felt  to  bo 
a  studied  insult — so  that  poverty  and  contempt  are  here 
denounced  on  the  enemies  of  Zion. 

Psalm  cxxx. — What  a  noble  composition — among  the 
most  illustrious  in  the  whole  collection.  Out  of  the 
depths  of  nature's  darkness  and  nature's  depravity  do  I 
cry  unto  Thee,  0  Lord.     Hear  my  prayer,  that  cometh 


158  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxxxi. 

not  out  of  feigned  lij^s.  Judge  me  not,  0  God,  according 
to  mine  iniquities,  else  I  perish.  Extend  to  me  the  for- 
giveness and  grace  of  the  Gospel ;  but  let  me  not  turn 
that  grace  into  licentiousness.  Teach  me  the  secret  of 
Christian  godliness — rejoicing  in  the  pardon  of  my  sins, 
and  yet  standing  in  awe  so  as  to  sin  not  —  What  a  preg- 
nant sentence,  that  the  forgiveness  of  God  is  a  forgive- 
ness that  He  might  be  feared. — Let  me  wait,  0  God,  for 
Thy  salvation — for  a  present  and  near  salvation,  as  well 
as  for  a  future  and  distant  one — a  present  light,  a  jDresent 
love  in  my  heart,  a  present  holiness  in  my  walk  and  con- 
versation. Lord,  I  would  pray  and  watch  for  this  blessed 
translation  ;  this  passing  from  spiritual  death  unto  spirit- 
ual life  ;  this  light  of  Thy  countenance  ;  this  joy  of  Thy 
salvation.  Give  me  of  Thy  plenteous  redemption,  both 
from  the  power  of  sin  and  from  its  punishment. 

Psalm  cxxxi. — The  lesson  of  this  psalm  is  a  tmly  im- 
portant one ;  and  there  is  in  it  what  I  should  call  the 
very  essence  of  the  Christian  philosophy — which  forbids 
our  intiTiding  into  things  unseen,  or  exercising  our- 
selves with  matters  too  high  for  us.  How  many  such 
great  matters  and  high  things  present  themselves  to  our 
thoughts  at  least,  if  not  to  our  view,  when  we  soar  up- 
ward among  the  summits  of  theological  speculation  ! — Do 
Thou  chasten  and  restrain  this  spirit,  0  Lord.  Do  Thou 
teach  me  the  respectful  observance  of  that  limit  which 
separates  the  secret  things  which  belong  unto  God  from 
the  revealed  things  which  belong  unto  us  and  to  our  chil- 
dren. Cast  down  all  my  lofty  imaginations  ;  and  sitting 
at  the  feet  of  Christ  my  teacher,  let  every  thought  of  my 
heart  be  brought  into  captivity  to  His  word  and  wilL 


PSALM  cxxxii.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  159 

Give  me,  0  Lord,  tliat  humility  of  the  true  faitli  which, 
is  akin  to  the  modesty  of  true  science.  Wean  me  from 
my  owTi  conceptions,  which  might  often  be  well  denomi- 
nated my  own  conceits.  Let  me  become  as  a  fool  that  I 
might  be  made  wise — as  a  little  child,  that  I  might  be 
qualified  for  entrance  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Let 
not  this  hope  abandon  me  ;  but  let  it  be  a  hope  altogether 
according  to  Thy  word,  or  grounded  on  Thy  word.  Give 
me,  with  all  docility  and  humbleness  of  mind,  to  take 
my  lesson  from  the  Bible,  and  walk  submissively  and 
duteously  on  its  bidden  path. 

Psalm  cxxxii. — The  occasion  of  this  psalm  is  conceived 
to  be  the  placing  of  the  ark  in  Solomon's  temple,  as  detailed 
in  2  Chron.  v.,  and  not  the  removal  of  it  from  the  country  to 
Mount  Zion,  though  this  in  verse  6  be  retrospectively  or  his- 
torically made  mention  of  The  reference  to  David,  and 
his  vow  and  his  afilictions,  are  also  conceived  to  be  retro- 
spective. The  anointed,  or  Solomon,  prays  for  the  Divine 
countenance  upon  himself,  (verse  10,)  for  the  sake  of 
David  his  father.  The  promise  to  David,  identical  with 
the  promise  to  Abraham,  is  here  adverted  to — though 
probably  not  understood  in  the  spiritual  and  high  mean- 
ing of  it.  Solomon's  views  probably  reached  no  farther 
than  to  the  continuance  of  his  own  family  upon  the  throne. 
He  did  much  towards  the  forfeiture  of  the  promise  by  the 
violation  of  its  conditions.  He  kept  not  the  covenant  nor 
the  testimony  of  God — though  we  doubt  not  that  on  the 
penitence  and  restoration  of  Israel,  an  illustrious  fulfilment 

is  still  awaiting  us Verse  16  is  one  of  the  notabilia 

of  Scripture. — My  God,  do  Thou  give  effect  to  its  blessed 
declaration  in  our  own  Church.     Give  to  its  ministers  the 


160  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        psalm  cxxxir. 

spirit  of  their  office,  and  make  its  people  willing  and  joy- 
full  intlie  tlay  of  Tliy  power.  May  the  word  of  salvation 
be  freely  given  forth  on  the  one  side,  and  gladly  accepted 
upon  the  other. — A  beautiful  psalm. 

Psalm  cxxxiii. — Let  me  therefore,  if  it  be  possible,  and 
as  much  as  lieth  in  me,  live  peaceably  with  all  men.  And 
0  what  a  desirable  thing  is  union  among  Christians — 
both  good  and  pleasant — most  agreeably  odorous,  like  the 
ointment  poured  forth,  and  fruitful  as  is  the  dew  of  Her- 
mon,  spreading  abroad  a  most  diffusive  satisfaction  among 
all ;  and  who  can  question  its  productiveness  of  conver- 
sion, in  the  face  of  our  Saviour's  prayer  that  all  may  be 
one — and  this  in  order  to  the  world's  believing  in  the 
Father  and  in  the  Son. — Enable  me,  0  God,  both  to  judge 
and  to  act  wisely  in  regard  to  the  Evangelical  Alliance. 
0  that  it  could  be  carried  forward  prosperously,  and  with 
good  effect  on  the  Christianity  of  our  land.  Teach  me  to 
think  aright,  and  to  propound  aright  what  I  do  think 
upon  this  subject.  I  pray  for  the  unity  of  Christians,  a 
marked  and  ostensible  unity — such  as  the  world  can  take 
knowledge  of,  and  so  as  to  draw  from  it  the  old  excla- 
mation of — "  Behold  these  Christians,  how  they  love  each 
other ! "  Let  there  be  a  Zion  in  our  day,  a  one  visible 
Church,  instead  of  our  present  divided  and  parti-coloured 
Christendom — a  fountain-head,  whence  the  blessing  might 
go  forth  even  unto  life  everlasting.  But  can  this  be  done 
in  any  other  way  than  by  Christ  in  person  ?  The  pre- 
tended vicar  is  an  antichrist. 

Psalm  cxxxiv. — This  psalm — which,  like  a  good  many 
others,  is  entitled  a  "  song  of  degrees/'  or  march-song — is 


PSALM  cxxxv.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  IGl 

conceived  to  be  made  up  of  two  benedictions — the  one 
from  the  patrol,  or  watchmen  outside  of  the  temple,  and 
addressed  to  the  priests  within — and  the  other  from  these 
■priests,  in  the  way  of  response  back  again.  There  is 
something  impressive  and  full  of  interest  in  these  cordial 
reciprocations  of  piety  and  good  brotherhood,  which  Hors- 
ley,  however,  conceives  to  have  taken  place  between  the 
priests  retiring  from  the  temple,  and  the  priests  who 
were  left  behind  at  the  shutting  of  the  gate  for  the 
night.  The  outgoing  priests  bid  those  who  remain  lift 
up  their  hands  and  bless  the  Lord  in  the  sanctuary — the 
solemn  temple,  made  no  doubt  with  human  hands,  yet 
in  which  God  delighted  to  dwell.  This  temple  was  a 
lofty  object  of  veneration  to  every  Jewish  heart ;  yet  it  is 
worthy  of  being  noted,  that  in  the  valedictory  sentence  of 
the  priests  within  to  those  without,  God  is  spoken  of  in  a 
higher  character  than  as  the  Deity  of  their  temple — even 
as  the  God  who  made  heaven  and  earth — that  earth  on 
which  the  party  without  were  now  treading,  and  those 
heavens  to  which  they  could  look  up  as  a  nobler  vault  than 
that  which  had  been  raised  in  Jerusalem,  and  was  the 
'admiration  of  the  surrounding  people.  "We  should  prize 
every  display  of  such  an  expansion. 

Psalm  cxxxv.  1-7. — There  is  a  strong  general  resem- 
blance between  this  and  the  115th  Psalm.  It  may  have 
been  written,  as  Good  supposes,  after  the  overthrow  of 
Sennacherib's  army,  and  certainly  after  the  establishment 
of  the  monarchy  in  Jerusalem,  (verse  21.)  The  praise 
and  the  grateful  acknowledgments  are  in  keeping  with  its 
being  the  occasion  of  a  recent  deliverance  from  enemies, 
which  would  naturally  suggest  the  idea  of  God's  signal 


1G2  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         psalm  cxxxv. 

protection  being  connected  with  His  choice  of  Jacob  and 
of  Israel  for  His  peculiar  people.  It  is  worthy  of  note, 
however,  and  gives  a  more  catholic  idea  of  Jewish  theism, 
that  such  frequent  ascriptions  are  given  to  Grod  as  the 
Sovereign  of  nature,  and  so  often,  as  to  take  the  prece- 
dency of  their  acknowledgment  to  Him  as  the  God  of 
their  own  nation.  The  greatness  of  the  true  God — His 
superiority  above  all  gods — His  unlimited  power  in  heaven 
and  earth,  and  sea,  and  under  the  earth — His  operations 
in  the  atmosphere,  so  as  to  effect  all  the  changes  and 
phenomena  of  weather — these  are  defeiTed,  and  done 
homage  to  previous  to  the  celebration  of  what  God  had 
done  (verse  8)  for  their  own  countrymen.  It  is  interest- 
ing to  mark,  in  verse  7,  God's  intromission  with  the  an- 
terior and  secondary  causes. 

8-21. — There  is  now  a  commemoration  of  the  national 
mercies — going  back  to  the  miracles  of  Egypt,  more 
especially  to  its  last,  and  greatest,  and  most  decisive 
miracle — the  death  of  all  its  first-born.  Xo  wonder  that 
a  historv  so  sioiial  and  marvellous  should  have  been  bound 
uj)  with  the  faith  of  the  people,  and  its  events  so  often 
and  publicly  made  mention  of  The  progress  from  Egypt 
to  Canaan  is  briefly  and  generally  narrated ;  and  indeed 
it  may  well  astonish  us  that  Israel  should  have  so  fre- 
quently fallen  away  from  the  recollection  of  these  things. 
It  recurs  to  the  celebration  of  them  now  in  a  period  of 
reformation,  and  when  God  had  just  interposed  for  their 
delivery  from  the  hands  of  a  mighty  and  idolatrous  con- 
queror. This  leads  to  a  comparison  of  the  gods  of  the 
nations  with  the  true  God  of  heaven  and  earth,  and  wno, 
repenting  Himself  concerning  His  seiwants,  had  just  ap- 
peared, not  as  an  avenger,  but  a  Saviour  from  the  power 


PSALM  cxxxvT.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  1G3 

of  their  enemies,  who  are  here  characterized  as  being  like 
the  senseless  idols  which  themselves  did  worship.  The 
concluding  invocations  fix  down  this  psalm  as  a  temple 
service. 

April,  1846. 

Psalm  cxxxvl  1-9. — This  psalm  is  conceived  to  have 
heen  prepared  for  a  great  public  occasion  after  the  return 
of  the  Jews  from  Babylon.  In  subject-matter,  and  often 
in  expression,  it  bears  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  last 
psalm.  The  chorus  seems  to  have  been  frequently  used 
in  the  sers^ices  of  the  Temple.  (See  2  Chron.  v.  13,  14 ; 
and  Ezra  iii.  10,  11.)  0  that  the  frequent  repetition  of 
this  blessed  chorus  were  to  fix  my  confidence  in  the  Divine 
mercy ;  and  that  I  had  more  adequate  sense  of  the  good- 
ness of  God,  as  well  as  adequate  gratitude  for  all  His 
lovingkindness  and  care.  Here,  as  in  the  preceding 
psalm,  we  find  Him  done  homage  to  as  the  God  of  na- 
ture, and  distinct  from  this  as  peculiarly  the  God  of  their 
own  nation.  And,  accordingly,  mention  is  first  made  of 
His  superiority  to  all  idols,  as  being  the  God  of  gods,  and 
Lord  of  lords,  as  having  been  the  Creator  of  heaven  and 
earth — (where  notice  the  expression  of  the  heavens  being 
made  by  Tvisdom,  as  indeed  they  were  by  a  most  skilful 
and  profound  geometry) — more  especially  of  His  having 
formed  the  lights,  and  so  made  the  heavens  above  subser- 
vient to  the  accommodation  and  benefit  of  the  earth  be- 
low— a  constant  benefit,  through  the  sun  to  inile  by  day, 
and  the  moon  and  stars  by  night. 

10-26. — The  psalmist  noAV  j)roceeds  to  the  commemo- 
ration of  God's  wonderful  dealings  with  Israel,  and  is 
more  full  and  particular  in  the  enumeration  of  these  than 
the  writer  of  the  preceding  psalm.     After  referring  to  the 


164  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       psalm  cxxxvn. 

last  and  most  fearful  of  the  Egyptian  plagues,  he  traces 
the  whole  of  the  miraculous  way  by  which  the  people  of 
God  were  conducted  to  their  settlement  in  the  promised 
land.  The  most  stupendous  of  these  miracles  certainly 
was  the  passage  over  the  Red  Sea,  with  the  signally  awful 
destruction  of  Pharaoh  and  his  hosts  —  Verse  23  is  in 
keeping  with  the  hypothesis  that  this  psalm  was  prepared 
for  some  great  celebration  after  the  return  of  Israel  from 
captivity,  though  many  similar  occasions  occurred  in  the 
course  of  their  history.     Often  were  they  reduced  to  a  low 

estate,  and  as  often  again  redeemed  from  their  enemies 

The  psalm  concludes  with  a  recurrence  to  the  more  gene- 
ral Providence  of  God — His  maintenance  of  all  that  lives, 
and  His  authority  in  heaven. — 0  let  me  ever  trust  in 
His  mercy,  yet  forget  not  that  His  is  a  mercy  that  He 
may  be  feared.  Let  me  not  abuse  the  goodness  of  God. 
Let  me  not  despise  the  riches  of  His  forbearance  and  long- 
suffering. 

Psalm  gxxxvii. — This  is  a  truly  affecting  ode,  sung  by 
the  Israelites  on  the  eve  of  their  return  from  Babylon, 
or  perhaps  soon  after  it.  There  is  more  of  pathos  and 
power  in  it  than  in  any  poem  of  the  same  dimensions 
which  I  know.  How  exquisitely  beautiful  the  image 
of  the  harps  upon  the  willows :  and  altogether  what  a 
strain  of  tenderness  !  One  can  enter  into  the  agonies  of 
the  Jews  under  the  contempt  and  cruelty  of  their  jeering 
enemies,  and  fully  sympathize,  both  with  their  revolt  at 
the  profanation  of  singing  a  sacred  hymn  for  their  enter- 
tainment, and  with  their  longing  desires  and  remem- 
brances after  their  much  loved  Jerusalem. — Let  me  share 
in  their  affection  for  Zion ;  and  0  forbid  that  the  secula- 


"SALM  cxxxviii.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  165 

rities  of  tlie  world  should  lead  me  to  forget  God,  or  to 
forego  the  services  and  the  spirit  of  godliness  —  The  three 
concluding  verses  fomi  the  utterance  of  a  ruder  and  lower 
morality  than  the  Grospel  will  now  tolerate,  and  the 
mixture  of  it  with  what  went  before  marks  strikingly  the 
earlier  character  of  the  old  Dispensation. 

Psalm  cxxxviii. — The  Septuagint  has  it  that — "  before 
angels  I  will  worship  Thee.''  It  may  be  demons  or  idols. 
(Psalm  xcviL  7.) . . .  How  precious  the  conjunction  of  con- 
stant occuri'ence — "  Thy  lovingkindness  and  Thy  truth  ! '' 
The  last  clause  of  verse  2  stands  high  among  my  notabi- 
lia. — My  Grod,  in  the  absence  of  all  those  manifestations  by 
which  conception  is  superadded  to  faith,  let  me  magnify 
Thy  word  by  resolutely  believing  therein.     Strengthen 

me,  0  Lord,  with  strength  in  my  soul The  gods  of  the 

nations,  spoken  of  in  verse  1,  shall  be  displaced  from  the 
faith  and  worship  of  the  kings  of  the  earth,  when  con- 
verted to  the  living  and  true  God,  the  knowledge  of  whom 

shall  at  length  cover  the  whole  world Verse  6  is  also  a 

notabile. — My  God,  I  do  walk  in  the  midst  of  trouble — 
revive  and  strengthen  me.  Save  from  mine  enemies  ;  and 
in  the  strength  of  Thy  right  hand  let  me  not  be  moved 
by  them.  Forsake  me  not,  0  Lord,  for  I  am  Thy  crea- 
ture, the  work  of  Thine  hands ;  and  I  desire  to  feel  all 
the  subordination  of  the  creature — the  lowliness  which 

Thou  hast  respect  unto Verse  8  is  a  decided  notabile, 

the  subject  of  a  most  appropriate  prayer  to  all  who  are 
earnestly  looking  and  feeling  their  way  Zionward.  "  Per- 
fect that  which  concerns  me.'' — Perfect  my  understanding 
in  Divine  things,  that  in  Thy  light  I  may  clearly  see  light. 
Perfect  that  which  is  "  lacking  "  in  my  faith.     Make  me 


166  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        psalm  cxxxix. 

a  perfect  man  in  Christ  Jesus.  Give  me  to  be  perfect 
even  as  Thou  art  perfect. 

Psalm  cxxxix.  1-12. — This  is  a  most  precious  and  pro- 
fitable psalm,  eminently  suited  for  bringing  us  near  to 
God,  even  as  it  represents  God  being  very  near  to  us.  He 
intimately  knows  me,  observes  all  my  doings,  penetrates 
my  thoughts  in  their  first  rising,  besets  me  everywhere, 
is  acquainted  with  all  my  doings,  and  all  my  sayings. 
Take  me,  0  God,  such  as  I  am — make  me  such  as  I  should 
be  ;  and  this  by  the  power  of  Thy  hand  upon  me.  I  can- 
not comprehend  how  I  should  be  thus  most  entirely  and 
throughout  known  to  God  ;  but  there  is  comfort  in  the 
thought  of  it.  His  intelligence  reaches  my  whole  case ; 
and  0  may  He,  by  His  goodness  and  power,  bring  a  whole 
remedy  to  bear  upon  it;  and  then  will  my  secret  faults 
be  cleansed  thoroughly.  And  what  an  enlargement  in 
the  thought  of  His  omnipresence  as  well  as  omniscience  ! 
I  cannot  repair  beyond  the  limits,  either  of  His  sight  or 
His  sovereignty.  And  how  beautiful  the  image  of  taking 
the  wings  of  the  morning  ! . . .  The  heaven  and  the  hell  of 
verse  8  may  signify  the  locale  of  "  above  and  below  the 
earth ;''  and  so  complete  the  sentiment,  that  neither  height 
nor  depth,  neither  length  nor  breadth,  can  carry  us  be- 
yond the  domain  of  His  cognizance  and  control ;  nor  can 
even  thickest  darkness  hide  us  from  His.  all-seeing  eye. 

13-24. — From  the  greatnesses  the  psalmist  passes  on 

to  the  profundities  of  nature Verse  14  is  one  of  the 

highest  of  our  Scripture  notabilia.  The  being  "  fearfully 
and  wonderfully  made ''  is  strikingly  descriptive  of  the 
human  framework,  so  abounding  as  it  does  in  complexi- 
ties and  delicacies  and  hidden  relationships,  the  contem- 


PSALM  cxL.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  167 

plation  of  which  might  well  fill  us  both  with  fear  and 
wonder.  Wliat  a  deep  mystery  lies  both  in  the  processes 
and  the  product  of  this  marvellous  creation  ! . . .  There  is  an 
obscurity  in  the  phrase  of  "  the  lowest  parts  of  the  earth/' 
though  it  makes  a  plausible  meaning  to  understand  by  it 
that  the  body  is  made  of  the  least  and  ultimate  parts  of 
matter,  the  primordia  of  all  things,  the  dust  of  the  ground. 
Surely  He  who  so  elaborated  us  at  the  first  does  not  with- 
draw His  care  from  us  afterwards. — Let  me,  therefore, 
cast  my  care  upon  Him ;  for  very  precious  are  His  thoughts 
towards  us.  May  my  first  waking  thoughts  be  always  of 
God.  And  save  me  from  enemies ;  and  let  my  chief  an- 
tipathy towards  them  be  because  they  are  Thy  enemies. 
But  let  not  malice,  or  uncharitableness,  or  selfishness, 
mingle  with  these  feelings.  Search  and  prove  me  tho- 
roughly. Purge  away  all  that  there  is  of  the  opposite  to 
that  love  which  remainetli  always,  and  is  everlasting. 

Psalm  cxl. — There  is  much  comfort  in  these  psalms, 
when  beset  whether  by  the  hostility  or  the  deceitfulness 
of  man.  I  am  exercised  at  present,  I  fear,  in  the  latter. 
But  preserve  me  from  uncharitableness,  0  Lord;  and 
whatever  befall,  let  my  resort  be  continually  to  Him  who 
judgeth  righteously.  The  lessons  given  forth  to  David 
when  thus  circumstanced  are  eminently  fitted  to  console 
and  guide  those  who  are  in  any  way  preyed  upon  by  the 
ungrateful  rapacity  of  those  with  whom  tliey  have  to  do. 
— Deliver  and  preserve  me,  0  God.  I  pray  for  peace.  I 
pray  also  for  protection.  Enable  me  to  appropriate  Thee 
to  myself,  and  to  say,  "Thou  art  my  God.''- -Verse  6  is  a 
notabile.  Let  my  appropriating  faith  cause  my  prayer 
to  rise  with  acceptance.      Be  Thou  the  strength  of  my 


168  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxli. 

Baivation.  Shield  me  from  the  devices  of  the  wicked,  and 
disappoint  them  of  their  evil  intentions,  0  God  —  Verse 
9  may  he  read  thus :  "  As  for  those  who  lift  up  the  head 
about  me,''  &c.  The  way  now  to  heap  burning  coals  on 
the  head  of  an  adversary,  is  to  relieve  him  and  do  him 
good.  What  a  comfort  it  should  he  to  men  of  generosity 
and  integrity,  that  God  will  redress  all  their  wrongs ! — 
Let  me,  therefore,  be  patient  under  injuries ;  and  this  on 
the  legitimate  consideration  that  the  Judge  is  at  the  door. 

Psalm  cxli. — What  a  press  of  importunity  there  is  in 
the  opening  words  of  this  psalm. — Teach  me  to  pray  ;  and 
let  me  not  think  that  I  am  to  be  heard  for  much  speak- 
ing. Let  the  heart  be  rightly  set,  and  this  will  give  right 
utterance  to  the  mouth.  And  do  Thou  not  only  guide  me 
in  prayer  to  Thyself,  but  do  Thou  regulate  and  restrain  the 
efflux  of  my  converse  with  fellow-men.  And  save  me  not 
only  from  the  converse  of  the  profligate,  but  from  that  of 
the  ungodly.  Increase  my  love  for  the  brethren ;  and 
let  me  ever  prefer  the  truth  from  their  lips  over  the  flat- 
teries and  applauses  of  the  world  —  Verse  6  is  conceived 
by  some  to  refer  to  the  virtual  overthrow  of  Saul  by 
David  at  the  cave  of  En-gedi,  when  his  words  were  those 
of  friendship  and  peace  to  his  deadliest  enemy.     There  is 

great  obscurity  in  this  place Verse  7  refers  to  some 

defeat  in  which  their  dead  lay  unburied.  However  defi- 
cient in  conscience,  or  however  unfeeling,  nay  cruel,  my 
enemies  might  be,  let  my  eyes  be  directed  towards  God. 
- — My  God,  guide  me  in  safety  through  my  present  exi- 
gencies. Let  not  mine  adversaries  triumph  over  me.  Pro- 
vide me  with  a  secure  escape  from  the  art  and  malice  of 
those  who  seek  my  hurt. 


i^SALM  cxLiii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  169 

Psalm  cxlii. — This  psalm  looks  like  a  sequel  to  the 
last,  in  which  David  promised  that  his  words  should  he 
sweet  unto  his  enemies  after  that  they  were  overthrown. 
He  is  represented  in  the  title  as  being  now  in  the  cave, 
previous  to  his  rencontre  with  Saul.  We  can  image  in  these 
circumstances  all  the  distress  and  desj)ondencj  which  are 
here  depicted  ;  and  what  more  natural  than  in  such  as 
David  having  recourse  to  praver.  And  there  was  a  confi- 
dence that  mingled  with  his  fears  and  held  him  up  in  the 
midst  of  them.  That  "  no  man  cared  for  his  soul,''  might 
mean  with  him  that  no  man  cared  for  his  life — none  would 
interpose  to  protect  him  from  the  arm  of  Saul,  lifted  up 
for  his  destruction.  Yet  the  frequent  application  of  this 
clause  to  the  soul,  so  as  to  make  it  express  the  indiifei'ence 
of  men  to  the  spiritual  interests  of  others,  makes  it  one  of 
the  notabilia  of  Scripture. — Let  me,  in  the  midst  of  desti- 
tution and  abandonment,  turn  me  to  Grod.  Be  Thou  mj 
portion  even  here.  0  shine  upon  my  soul ;  and  make 
Thyself  manifest  to  me  as  my  reconciled  Friend  and 
Father.  Deliver  me  from  men ;  and  release  me,  0  God, 
from  the  imprisonment  of  darkness  and  spiritual  death  in 
which  I  have  been  held  so  long.  Put  me  into  the  hands 
of  the  righteous,  saving  me  from  evil  men. 

Psalm  cxliil — Another  outset  of  importunity,  with  an 
appeal  to  the  tnith  and  righteousness  of  God  —  Verse  2 
is  one  of  the  notabilia. — My  God,  give  me  a  refuge  from 
judgment  in  Thy  propitiated  mercy.  Tlie  Psalmist  was 
urged  to  these  earnest  pleadings  by  the  hardships  he  en- 
dured at  the  hand  of  enemies.  This  might  have  been 
done  in  the  way  of  chastisement ;  but  he  prays  for  miti- 
gation.    I  can  imagine  that  if  former  sins  have  put  one 

VOL.  in.  H 


17a  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxliv. 

in  the  power  of  enemies,  these  may  be  let  loose  upon  him, 
and  overwhelm  him  with  disgrace,  and  expose  him  to  the 
abandonment  of  society. — I  have  much  to  meditate  on 
in  the  way  of  past  sinfulness.  Thou  hast  preserved  me 
hitherto.  My  God,  let  the  end  be  peace  and  the  light  of 
Thy  countenance.  0  that  my  soul  thirsted  after  God. 
Hide  Thy  face  no  longer.  Command  the  light  to  shine 
into  my  heart.  Let  me  tmst  even  now,  and  before  the 
manifestations  which  I  pray  for.  Let  me  trust  at  present, 
even  though  I  should  not  hear  Thy  lovingkindness  till 
the  morning,  and  not  know  the  way  I  should  walk  in 
till  Thou  hast  further  revealed  it  to  me.  "Wlien  mine 
enemies  assail  me,  let  my  hiding-place  be  God  —  Verse 
10  is  quite  notable.  Heaven  is  the  land  of  uprightness. 
— Quicken  and  deliver  me,  0  Lord ;  and  meanwhile  let 
me  give  myself  up  to  Thy  service. 

Psalm  cxliv. — This  psalm,  like  the  ninth,  seems  to  have 
been  a  thanksgiving  for  a  national  deliverance.  It  is 
obviously  the  song  of  a  warrior.  It  is  a  magnificent  poem. 
. . .  Verses  3  and  4  are  notabilia. — Humble  me,  0  God, 
in  the  thousrht  of  mv  own  insio-nificance,  even  as  David 
was  when  he  ascribed  his  deliverance  from  enemies  to  the 
special  interposal  of  God's  power  and  providence.  Make  me 
to  feel  as  he  did  the  evanescence  of  man's  life  here  belov/. 
Whsit  need  there  is  now  for  some  express  manifestation  to 
arouse  the  world  from  its  ungodliness — a  world  overrun 
with  strange  children,  with  men  estranged  and  alienated 
from  God.  0  deliver  Thy  chosen  out  of  their  hands,  and 
put  a  song  into  their  mouths.  Hasten  the  emancipation 
of  the  human  family  from  the  thraldom  of  him  who  still 
wields  the  ascendency  over  them.     And  let  the  young 


p«ALM  cxLV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  171 

generation  arise  as  a  seed  to  serv^e  Thee.  0  may  they 
be  the  supports  of  the  Church  when  we  have  left  this 
weary  wilderness.  Bless  them  with  all  spiritual  blessings  ; 
but  let  us  not  despise  the  good  things  of  this  life,  whereof 
godliness  has  the  promise,  as  well  as  of  the  life  which  is 
to  come.  They  formed  the  rewards  of  obedience  under  the 
old  Economy  ;  and  in  the  keeping  of  the  commandments 
may  we  still  experience  that  there  is  a  great  and  a  pre- 
sent reward. 

Psalm  cxlv.  1-9. — This  is  a  truly  noble  psalm,  and  oc- 
cupies a  very  high  and  distinguished  place  in  the  collection. 
I  may  here  notice  that  the  comparative  celebrity  of  psalms 
depends  a  good  deal  on  the  merits  of  the  version  sung 
in  churches.  The  present  one  has  been  well  rendered ; 
whereas  there  are  many  others  to  which  great  injustice 
is  done  in  the  metrical  psalms,  and  for  obtaining  a  full 
and  fair  impression  of  which,  we  must  read  them  in  the 

Bible Verse  3  is  a  notabile. — Give  me  to  feel,  0  Lord, 

the   humility   of  my  own   conscious  ignorance Then 

follows  a  description,  first  of  the  greatness,  and  then  of 
the  goodness  of  God. — Let  me  be  solemnized  and  stand 
in  awe  of  the  one  ;  let  me  confide  in  the  other.  The 
representation  of  His  goodness  is  mixed  up  with  that  of 
His  righteousness  and  holiness  ;  so  that  while  His  natural 
attributes  of  greatness  and  unsearchableness  and  power 
are  most  spoken  of  down  to  verse  7,  the  moral  attributes 
form  the  chief  theme  of  what  remains  in  this  aftecting 
composition. — 0  my  God,  grant  that  I  may  have  a  fuller 
and  freer  confidence  than  heretofore  in  Thy  great  good- 
ness. Wliy  shoidd  I  remain  so  unmoved  by  the  assurances 
and  demonstrations  so  urgently  and  repeatedly  given  of 


172  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cxlvi. 

it.    And  it  is  a  goodness  which  extendeth  to  all— a  tender 
mercy  that  is  over  all. 

10-21. — This  is  throughout  a  memorable  psalm.  Both 
the  kingdom  of  nature  and  that  of  grace  are  included  in 
verse  10  ;  and  both,  throughout  this  and  the  two  following 
verses,  are  made  alike  the  tributaries  and  the  witnesses  to 
the  greatness  of  the  Divinity.  The  eternity  of  God's 
power — His  compassion — His  diffusive  liberality — His 
righteousness  and  holiness — are  all  most  impressively  set 
forth  in  these  verses.  And  so  far  from  this  God  of  might 
and  glorious  majesty  being  distant  and  inaccessible,  He  is 
said  to  be  nigh— nigh  "  to  all  that  call  upon  Him ;''  but — 
let  me  not  forget  the  qualification — "  who  call  upon  Him 
in  truth.'' — My  God,  so  qualify  me.  Put  truth  into  my 
inward  parts.  Let  mine  be  a  real  and  honest  call  upon 
God.  Teach  me  to  pray.  Give  me  to  pray  in  faith,  that 
according  to  my  realizing  sense  of  my  own  dependence 
and  of  God's  sufficiency,  so  it  may  be  done  unto  me.  Put 
the  fear  of  Thee  into  my  heart,  and  fulfil  its  desire.  Hear 
my  cry  and  save  me,  0  God.  0  may  the  love  of  Thee  be 
shed  abroad  in  my  heart  ;  and  then  shall  I  be  preser\"ed, 
and  have  all  things  working  together  for  my  highest  good 
— even  the  good  of  my  soul.  0  that  1  reached  the  length 
of  praise  !  Thy  kingdom  come,  0  Lord — when  all  shall 
worship  and  give  thanks  at  the  remembrance  of  Thy  holi- 
ness, from  the  least  to  the  greatest. 

Psalm  cxlvi. — This  is  supposed  to  have  been  sung  by 
the  captives  after  their  return  from  Babylon ;  and  it  is 
probable,  from  verses  3  and  4,  that  it  was  after  the  dis- 
appointment they  sustained  at  the  hand  of  the  Persian 
court,  when  the  work  of  rebuilding  the  Temple  had  an 


PSALM  cxLvii.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  173 

arrest  laid  upon  it.  It  is  a  noble  resource  for  the  pious 
when  tliej  can  cast  themselves  upon  God  under  all  the 
wrongs  which  they  may  sustain  from  the  treacheiy  and 
faithlessness  of  men.  They  contrast  His  power  and  truth 
with  the  frailty  and  falsehood  of  men  who,  even  in  their 
best  estate,  "  are  altogether  vanity.''  His  peculiar  relation 
to  themselves  in  their  peculiar  circumstances  is  palpably 
set  forth  in  His  executing  judgment  for  the  oppressed — in 
His  loosing  the  prisoners — in  His  raising  them  who  are 
bowed  dovni — and,  finally,  in  His  preserving  the  strangers. 
. . .  The  psalm  concludes  w^ith  the  confidence  that  all  will 
yet  go  well  for  Jerusalem,  and  that  Zion  will  be  the  me- 
tropolis of  the  whole  earth. — Speed  this  blessed  consum- 
mation in  Thine  own  good  time,  0  Lord. 

Psalm  cxlvil  1-11. — Several  of  the  psalms  are  assigned 
to  the  feast  of  tabernacles,  or  harv^est-home,  as  their  occa- 
sion ;  and  this  may  have  been  one  of  these.  But  there  is 
over  and  above  a  great  likelihood  of  its  having  been  a 
prepared  song  for  the  captives  from  Babylon — and  this 
after  they  had  been  released  from  the  prohibition  of 
building  their  temple  under  the  government  of  Nehemiah. 
. . .  His  "  building  up  of  Jerusalem,''  and  His  "  gathering 
together  of  the  outcasts  of  Israel,"  in  verse  2,  form  strong 
verisimilitudes  in  favour  of  this  supposition.  How  nobly 
the  recognition  of  God,  as  the  Lord  of  Nature,  mingles 
with  the  grateful  acknowledgment  of  His  goodness  as 
the  Shepherd  of  Israel — the  greatness  and  wisdom  of  the 
Supreme,  wdth  His  condescension  to  the  meek  and  humble ! 
— Give  me  to  stand  in  awe  of  Thine  infinite  understand- 
ing, and  be  restrained  thereby  from  all  presumptuous 
speculation  on  matters  too  high  for  me The  efiusions 


174  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         psalm  cxlvii. 

of  praise  correspond  here  with  all  these  different  views  of 
the  Deity.  His  providential  care  of  man  and  beast  is  set 
forth  with  great  beauty;  and  it  is  not  obscurely  inti- 
mated in  verses  10  and  11,  that  it  is  not  by  armies — not 
by  might — that  the  Lord  grants  deliverance  to  His  people  ; 
but  that  His  pleasure  is  directly  to  aid  all  those  who  fear 
and  trust  Him. 

12-20. — To  "strengthen  the  bars  of  the  gates  of  Jeru- 
salem/' is  an  expression  in  keeping  with  the  hypothesis, 
that  this  psahu  is  a  celebration  of  God's  blessings  to  those 
who  had  just  finished  the  building  of  their  city.  The 
peace  and  the  plenty  which  they  then  enjoyed  are  also 
fitting  subjects  of  gratitude  and  gratulation.  There  is  a 
fine  intermingling  here,  too,  of  what  is  done  by  God  in 
the  kingdom  of  Nature,  as  well  as  in  the  kingdoms  of 
Providence  and  Grace.  It  looks  as  if  these  verses  had 
been  both  composed  and  sung  by  men  who  had  had  access 
to  higher  and  colder  climates  than  is  the  general  climate 
of  Judea — by  men  familiar  with  snow  and  ice  and  hoar- 
fi'ost,  and  the  process  of  thawing  by  which  these  are  melted 
and  give  rise  to  inundations. — Let  us  recognise  God  by 
His  doings  in  the  world,  as  well  as  by  His  sayings  in  the 
Word.  Let  us  have  respect  unto  both,  and  more  espe- 
cially to  the  latter.  Shew  me,  0  God,  Thy  word  by  Thy 
Spirit.  Teach  me  the  way  wherein  I  should  walk.  Se- 
lect me  from  a  world  lying  in  wickedness  and  darkness ; 
from  which  do  Thou  translate  me  into  the  marvellous 
light  of  the  Gospel.  Let  me  not  hold  it  enough  to  be  on 
a  level  with  the  Jews,  in  that  I  have  access,  as  they  had, 
to  the  oracles  of  God.  What  does  this  profit,  if  I  read 
with  the  veil  upon  my  heart  ? — May  that  veil,  0  God,  be 
taken  away;  and  let  Thy  blessed  Gospel  come  to  me 


PSALM  cxLix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  175 

with  power,  and  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  with  much 
assurance. 

Psalm  cxlviii. — A  noble  hymn,  and  from  which  we 
should  learn  to  have  a  higher  consideration  for  natural 
theology.  What  a  magnificent  survey  is  here  taken  of 
Creation — beginning  with  the  heavens  and  coming  down 
to  earth.  The  inhabitants  of  heaven,  the  angels  and  hosts 
of  the  celestial,  are  included  in  this  invocation,  along 
with  the  materialism  of  these  upper  regions — as  the  sun, 
moon,  stars,  and  the  waters  that  were  above  the  firmament. 
Then,  in  counterpart  to  this,  we  have  the  animate  and 
inanimate  of  the  world  below — the  deep,  with  its  sea- 
monsters — the  earth,  with  its  cattle  and  fowls  and  insects  ; 
and  last  of  all,  its  rational  occupiers,  in  calling  upon  whom, 
the  psalmist  passes  onward  from  kings  and  all  people,  to 
saints  and  those  who  are  near  unto  Himself — thus  making 
transition  from  the  natural  to  the  spiritual,  and  exhibiting 
such  a  combination  as  we  would  do  well  to  imitate  both 
in  our  public  and  private  devotions. — Save  me  from  that 
exclusiveness  of  view  which  is  too  fre(juent  among  church- 
men ! 

Psalm  cxlix. — This  psalm  is  also  referred  to  the  period 
after  the  return  from  Babylon.  We  can  enter  into  the 
afi'ection  of  the  Jews  for  their  Zion,  now  re-occupied,  and 
again  become  their  own. — Give  me  to  joy  in  God,  and  to 
regard  Him  more  practically  and  habitually  in  my  heart 
as  Him  who  made  me.  0  admit  me  to  the  intimacies  of 
such  a  fellowship  with  Thyself  as  I  earnestly  aspire  after. 
Give  me  to  apprehend  vividly  and  aright  Thine  affection 
for  Thy  children,  and  the  pleasure  Thou  hast  in  them, 


176  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  psalm  cl. 

sucli  as  a  father  liatli  for  his  family.  0  if  I  couki  thus  be 
made  to  rejoice  and  to  gloiy  in  God  !  Find  an  entrance 
for  Thyself  into  mj  bosom,  so  that  Thou  majest  dwell  and 
walk  in  me  all  the  day  long,  and  I  may  have  sweet  medi- 
tation of  Thee  in  the  night  season  and  upon  my  bed. 
And  with  this  elevation  of  heart  towards  God,  let  there 
be  a  resolute  and  intrepid  opposition  to  all  Avhich  is 
opposed  to  Him  in  the  world.  We  are  forbidden  the  use 
of  carnal  weapons ;  but  the  weapons  of  our  warfare  are 
ret  ^'  mighty  to  the  pulling  down  of  strongholds '' — such 
weapons,  for  example,  as  Stephen  used,  when  the  enemies 
of  the  faith  were  not  able  to  resist  the  wisdom  and  the 
Spirit  by  which  he  spake.  Such  a  victory  and  triumph 
are  awaiting  the  saints  ;  nor  are  we  prepared  to  say  that 
they  will  not  take  part  in  the  battles  which  seem  to  be 
predicted  in  the  Book  of  Revelation,  before  that  the 
kingdoms  of  the  earth  shall  become  the  kingdoms  of 
Christ,  when  the  execution  of  the  judgment  there  written 
shall  take  effect  on  the  potentates  of  the  world. 

Psalm  cl. — The  Psalms  have  their  final  and  most  ap- 
propriate outgoing  in  praise — that  highest  of  all  the  exer- 
cises of  godliness.  And  this  psalm  is  not  a  hymn  from 
the  Church  alone,  but  from  the  temple  of  nature — seeing 
that  it  calls  on  men  to  "  praise  Him  in  the  sanctuary,'^ 
and  to  "  praise  Him  also  in  the  firmament  of  His  power." 
— 0  that  I  could  rise  to  the  lofty  strain  of  this  invoca- 
tion ;  and  that  I  w^as  more  alive  to  the  excellent  great- 
ness of  Him  who  is  the  Lord  of  Creation,  and  of  all  its 
vonders — so  that  I  might  praise  Him  for  His  mighty 
.vorks  in  Nature,  for  His  mighty  acts  in  ProA^dence  and 
History But  this  is  pre-eminently  the  composition  of 


PROVERBS  I.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  177 

a  saint ;  and  so,  Avliile  lie  calls  on  everj^tliing  that  liath 
breath  to  praise  the  Lord,  he  invokes  Him  also  as  the 
Head  of  the  Church,  and  calls  to  his  aid  the  glorious 
symphonies  of  the  temple.  Altogether,  it  forms  a  noble 
concert — a  grand  valedictoiy  celebration,  winding  up,  as 
it  were,  the  magnificent  series  of  those  devotional  odes 
which  have  formed  the  delight  and  exercise  of  the  Church 

in  all  ages The  order  of  these  psalms  seems  to  have 

been  in  no  way  chronological.  Yet  Ezra,  who  is  under- 
stood tp  have  been  the  collector,  brings  the  whole,  by  his 
selection  of  Psalm  cl.,  to  a  most  ai^propriate  close. — I  shall 
never  again  so  dwell  upon  them  on  earth.* — My  God, 
prepare  me  for  heaven,  and  for  joining  there  in  the  songs 
of  the  redeemed  in  the  high  services  of  eternity. 

PROVERBS. 

Proverbs  i.  1-9. — Proverbs  are  sayings  of  weight  and 
wisdom,  whether  the  meaning  be  veiled  in  figure  or  not 
—though  the  translation  of  the  Septuagint  into  irapoLfMcat 
would  seem  to  intimate  the  figurative  character  of  a  pro- 
verb. It,  however,  is  not  so  necessarily,  and  not  so  in 
the  vast  majority  of  that  precious  collection  here  spread 
out  before  us.  The  inspired  authorship  of  Solomon  has 
a  high  place  in  the  Bible,  and  more  especially  the  Book 
on  which  we  now  enter — than  which  none  is  more  fre- 
quently quoted  in  the  New  Testament — that  most  power- 
fid  of  all  witnesses  to  the  canonicity  of  the  various  pieces 
which  make  up  the  Old.  The  word  in  Hebrew  signifying 
proverb  comes  from  a  radical  which  means  to  rule — thus 

*  In  penning  this  I  did  not  advert  to  the  "  Horae  Biblicae  Sabbaticae." — 
What  room  for  enlargement ! 

h2 


178  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  i. 

implying  that  it  is  a  sentence  of  commanding  authority, 
and  which  should  bear  a  corresponding  sway  over  the 
mind  of  the  reader.  The  authorship  of  the  Book  is  most 
decisively  stamped  upon  it  at  the  outset ;  and  the  subject 
so  defined  as  to  include  in  the  practical  wisdom,  or  wis- 
dom of  life,  whereof  it  treats,  both  the  moral  and  the  ex- 
perimental— the  light  of  conscience  as  well  as  the  light  of 
observation.  The  "  knowledge  and  discretion''  of  verse  4 
hang  chiefly  upon  the  latter,  as  being  founded  on  a  know- 
ledge of  the  world  and  its  ways.  The  "  dark  sayings  "  of 
verse  6  imply  enigma — or  truth  and  wisdom  under  the 
concealment  of  a  figure. — My  God,  put  Thy  fear  into  my 
heart.  Give  me  hold  of  this  great  master-princii)le  of  all 
wisdom.  Seeing  that  Thou  demandest  knowledge,  let  a 
sense  of  duty  to  Thee  impel  me  onward  to  the  prosecution 

of  it Solomon  speaks  as  a  father — and  perhaps  to  a 

son  under  immediate  tuition  of  both  his  parents.  Know- 
ledge and  Avisdom  confer  a  truer  dignity  than  all  the 
insignia  of  rank. 

10-19. — Verse  10  is  one  of  my  Scripture  notabilia.  In 
these  days  of  robbery  and  violence  the  dissuasive  is  against 
companionship  with  thieves  and  murderers  ;  but  now  it 
may  be  directed  generally  against  all  such  converse  with 
the  irreligious  and  the  profligate  as  might  expose  to  the 

evil  communications  which  corrupt  good  manners Verse 

1 6  is  in  all  likelihood  the  verse  referred  to  by  the  Apostle 
in  Rom.  iii.  15.  But  in  making  haste  to  shed  the  blood 
of  others,  they  land  themselves  in  their  own  ruin.  De- 
struction and  misery  are  in  their  ways — ^but  it  is  destruc- 
tion and  misery  to  themselves,  though  so  intent  on  mis- 
chief to  others,  that  they  do  not  see  the  way  on  which 
they  are  rushing  to  be  that  of  their  own  final  perdition 


PROVERBS  II.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  179 


and  wretchedness.  Their  lives  will  pay  the  forfeit,  at  the 
last,  of  their  foul  and  ferocious  misdeeds.  But  in  the 
blindness  of  their  infatuation  they  do  not  perceive  this, 
and  so  they  precipitate  themselves  forward  to  their  own 
final  undoing — so  as  to  fall  beneath  the  inferior  creatures 
in  sagacity  and  reach  of  sight — such  as  the  bird,  which 
sees  the  snare  that  is  laid  for  it,  and  shuns  it  accordingly. 
But  perhaps  this  parenthetic  1 7th  verse  may  be  addressed 
to  the  son  of  Solomon,  who  has  had  the  hazards  of  evil 
companionship  set  before  him,  and  who,  under  the  figure 
here  used,  is  taught  how  to  apply  the  warning  to  himself. 
20-33. — This  whole  passage  ranks  very  high  among  the 
memorabilia  of  Scripture — teeming  throughout  with  most 
precious  and  important  lessons  in  theology,  as  the  univer- 
sality of  the  call  from  Grod  to  man — "  Turn  you  at  my 
reproof ;"  the  efiect  of  so  turning,  that  God  will  pour  out 
His  Spirit,  so  as  to  prove  the  antecedency  of  what  is  done 
by  man — not  to  the  first,  but  to  subsequent  influences  and 
manifestations  of  grace  from  on  high — the  blessed  har- 
mony between  the  Spirit  and  the  Word,  as  if  the  object  or 
end  of  giving  the  Spirit  was  to  make  known  the  Word ; 
then  the  consequences  of  a  refusal — that  though  the  Spirit 
would  be  given  should  they  turn  now,  it  followed  not  that 
He  would  be  given  though  they  should  call  afterwards — 
the  bitter  fruit  of  impenitency,  the  fruit  of  its  own  way,  the 
reaping  of  that  which  was  sown,  the  natural  and  inherent 
misery,  in  short,  that  attaches  to  sin  and  to  all  ungod- 
liness.— Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  hearken  unto  Thee,  and 
hearken  unto  Thee  diligently,  even  that  my  soul  may  live. 

Proverbs  ii.  1-9. — To  ^'hide  my  commandments''  sig- 
nifies to   lay  up  my  commandments — laid  up   not  for 


180  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  pkovkubs  ii. 

concealment,  but  for  custody.  To  "hide  tlie  Word  in  one's 
heart,"  and,  the  "life  hidden  with  Christ  in  God,''  and  simi- 
lar expressions  in  certain  other  places,  seem  all  to  require 
being  understood  in  this  way.  The  connexion  between 
seeking  and  finding  is  here  very  strongly  and  urgently 
■.lei  forth. — 0  may  I  therefore  put  forth  far  more  of  dili- 
gence and  strenuousness  in  the  work  of  seeking  after  the 
knowledge  of  God — ^more  precious  than  all  silver  or  hid 
treasure.  And  what  a  glorious  acquisition,  to  understand 
the  fear  of  the  Lord — a  singular  expression  for  a  most 
singularly  valuable  accomplishment.  But  let  me  combine 
prayer  with  exertion  for  this  object — seeing  that  this  wis- 
dom is  a  gift  from  above,  not  to  supersede  our  efforts, 
but  that  we  might  superadd  dependence  and  prayer  to 
them.  And  it  is  further  worthy  of  remark,  that  the 
righteousness  of  our  conduct  contributes  to  the  enlight- 
enment of  our  creed.  The  wholesome  reaction  of  the 
moral  on  the  intellectual  is  clearly  intimated  here — inas- 
much as  it  is  to  the  righteous  that  God  imparteth  wis- 
dom— ^loesides  being  a  buckler  to  them,  giving  wisdom  to 
His  saints,  and  preserving  their  way.  The  understand- 
ing here  spoken  of  is  chiefly  the  right  discernment  of  the 
moral — of  the  righteousness,  and  the  judgment,  and  the 
equity,  and  of  good  paths,  even  as  of  the  fear  of  the 
Lord. 

10-22. — We  have  here  both  the  pleasantness  and  the 
profitableness  of  knowledge  and  wisdom,  with  the  safety 
which  there  is  in  discretion  and  understanding.  It  is  chiefly 
a  moral  wisdom,  or  right  moral  understanding,  which  is 
spoken  of  in  this  passage.  And  the  great  achievement 
which  is  celebrated  and  held  forth  in  these  verses,  is  the 
cautious  avoidance  of  evil  company — whether  of  men  given 


PKovERBs  III.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  181 


to  deceit  and  violence,  or  of  women  wlio,  by  luring  to 
the  paths  of  licentiousness,  do  in  fact  lure  to  the  paths  of 

destruction There  is  a  word  that  occurs  more  than  once 

in  these  verses,  and  which  occurs  frequently  throughout 
this  Book,  and  whereof  I  have  not  met  with  an  exactly 
defined  signification — "  fro  ward.''  Some  understand  by  it 
peevishness  or  perverseness.  Were  I  to  consult  its  etymo- 
logy, I  should  rather  conceive  that  it  ^vsis  fromward ;  and 
so,  impetuous  headstrong  acting,  on  the  impulse  of  what- 
ever feeling  is  uppermost  in  the  mind,  unrestrained  by 
calculation  or  conscience,  and  therefore  the  opposite  of 
discretion.  The  precise  meaning  will  be  further  evolved, 
perhaps,  in  future  passages. 

Proverbs  hi.  1-10. — The  lesson  at  the  outset  of  this 
chapter  may  be  regarded  either  as  filial  obedience,  if  we 
look  upon  it  as  addressed  from  a  father  to  a  son ;  or  if  it 
be  an  address  from  the  "Wisdom  which  inspired  this  Book 
to  its  readers,  then  may  it  be  understood  as  a  general 
lesson  of  obedience  to  God's  moral  and  unchangeable  law. 
There  are  temporal  blessings  annexed  to  this  obedience ; 
but  of  such  a  specific  kind,  that  they  may  be  spiritualized 
into  eternity,  and  the  life  and  peace  of  the  spiritually 
minded. — 0  my  God,  write  on  my  heart  the  mercy  and 
the  truth  which  enter  into  such  blessed  conjunction  with 
each  other,  and  which  conjoin  the  favour  of  God  with 
that  of  men.  And  what  a  precious  notabile  is  comprised 
in  verses  5  and  6! — My  God,  enable  me  to  realize  the 
lesson  of  these  verses  ;  and  under  all  the  urgencies  of  my 
lot,  may  I  know  what  it  is  to  look  upwardly  for  guidance 
to  Thyself,  and  to  be  still — in  the  knowledge  that  Thou 
art  God.     Give  me  the  health  of  a  well-conditioned  soul  j 


182  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  hi. 

and  0  may  I  know  what  it  is  to  honour  the  Lord  with 
what  He  gives  me  in  stewardship  and  trust,  and  in  the 
faith,  too,  that  ultimately  I  shall  not  lose  hj  it. 

11-18. — Verses  11  and  12  form  the  subject  of  an  un- 
doubted quotation  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews — far  the 
strongest  and  most  satisfactory  species  of  proof  for  the 
inspiration  of  this  Book,  and  the  others  which  are  so 
quoted  in  the  New  Testament. — Then  follows  a  memor- 
able passage  translated  into  one  of  our  most  popular 
paraphrases.  The  superiority  of  mental  and  moral  to  all 
material  wealth,  is  here  put  forth  in  weighty  sentences, 
and  by  apt  illustrations.  The  blessings  here  annexed  to 
wisdom  are  no  doubt  of  a  temporal  character;  but  it  is 
well  to  remark,  that,  apart  from  eternity,  the  mental,  in 
respect  of  present  happiness,  is  superior  to  the  material. 
Tliere  is  a  peace  and  a  pleasure  in  goodness,  which  makes 
even  the  enjoyment,  for  the  time  being,  far  higher  than 
any  gratification  that  worldly  riches  might  enable  us  to 
obtain.  But  even  riches  are  often  added  to  the  more 
direct  and  immediate  felicities  attendant  on  wisdom  and 
worth — these  last,  however,  distributed  by  the  left  hand, 
as   of  lesser  consideration  than  the  length  of  days  that 

is  given  by  the  right Wliat  a  blessed  image  is  that  by 

which  wisdom  is  likened  to  the  tree  of  life — having  which, 
we  are  made  for  ever  happy  in  Paradise  I 

May,  184G. 
19-35. — As  the  highest  recommendation  of  wisdom, 
the  reader  is  can'ied  up  to  Him  who  is  the  Author  of  all 
things,  and  who  in  wisdom  made  them  all.  It  is  in- 
teresting to  find  in  the  sacred  volume,  the  heavens — 
the  geometry  of  which  is  so  profound  and  perfect — thus 


PROVERBS  iV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  183 

represented  as  a  product  of  the  Divine  understanding. 
And  so  wisdom  is  urged  upon  man  as  botli  of  vital  use 
and  of  adornment — "  grace  unto  thy  neck.''  Then  there 
is  the  safety  which  it  ensures  to  its  possessor. — My  God, 
be  Thou  my  confidence,  and  let  me  not  be  afraid  of  the 
assaults  of  popular  violence.  And  let  me  do  good ;  but 
only  when  the  good  is  a  reality,  and  not  a  semblance  to 
which  I  am  urged  by  the  clamours  whether  of  misguided 
zeal,  or  of  a  devising  and  deliberate  malignity.  But  what 
my  hand  findeth  to  do  in  the  way  of  clear  duty,  let  me  do 
it  instantly  and  with  all  my  might.  Save  me,  0  God, 
from  so  much  as  the  -wish  to  do  hurt ;   and  let  me  not 

enter  into  controversy  without  a  sufficient  cause Then 

we  have  the  froward  contrasted  with  the  righteous.  I 
find  that  froward  is  a  translation  from  words  that  differ 
between  themselves  in  the  Greek  Septuagint,  and  which 
I  should  have  rendered  by  unfaithful,  (ch.  ii.  12,)  per- 
verse, (ch.  ii.  14,)  unla^^^ul,  (ch.  iii.  82,)  or  transgressor  of 
the  law.  It  is  in  conformity  with  the  Septuagint  that 
the  "scorners"  here  are  the  "proud''  in  the  quotation  of 
verse  34  by  James. 

Proverbs  iv.  1-17. — The  wise  man  still  speaks  in  tho 
parental  character  of  a  father  addressing  his  children — 
even  as  he  himself  (Solomon)  alleges  that  he  was  in- 
structed and  warned  by  his  father  David.  He  was  the 
object  of  his  father's  preference,  and  the  special  favourite 
of  his  mother,  as  we  learn  from  the  history ;  and  the 
coincidence  here  with  the  direct  narrative  is  very  inter- 
esting. And  it  is  a  further  coincidence,  that  as  the 
fruit  of  David's  endeavouring  to  press  upon  him  the  value 
of  wisdom,  this  is  what  he  selected  above  all  others,  as 


184  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  iv. 

the  thing  he  would  ask  of  God — because  the  principal 
thing.  And  so  he  in  turn  presses  the  same  lesson  upon 
his  own  son — who,  if  Rehohoam,  did  not  profit  much  bj 

Solomon's  attempts  to  lead  him  in  the  right  path What 

an  important  caution  have  we  in  verse  15,  to  avoid  evil, 
to  shun  temptation,  not  to  come  near  it,  not  to  look  on 
it ;  but  turn,  and  so  as  that  it  shall  not  be  present  to  the 
eye  of  the  senses! — Neither,  0  Grod,  let  me  suffer  its 
being  present  to  the  eye  of  the  mind.  These  precautions 
apply  to  the  temptations  of  licentiousness  in  all  ages.  In 
that  age,  when  rapine  and  lawless  violence  were  abroad, 
they  are  applied  as  warnings  against  another  sort  of  com- 
panionship. 

18-27. — Verse  18  is  a  decided  notabile,  and  points 
decidedly  to  the  connexion  between  the  moral  and  the 
intellectual,  and  the  influence  of  the  former  upon  the 
latter.  The  closer  our  walk  with  God,  and  so  the  way  of 
conformity  to  His  enjoined  righteousness — the  clearer  will 
be  our  discernment  of  all  spiritual  truth,  the  brighter 
will  be  the  light  within,  or  the  candle  of  the  Lord  in 
cur  hearts,  and  the  brighter  also  will  our  light  shine  be- 
fore men.  In  counterpart  to  this,  the  way  of  the  wicked 
is  as  darkness.  (See  Ps.  Ixxxii.  5,  and  Job  xviii.  5,  6.) . . . 
The  life  and  the  health  of  wisdom  are  here  emphatically 
stated:  verse  23  is  another  most  decided  notabile. — My 
God,  may  I  be  enabled  to  keep  my  heart  in  the  love  of 
Thyself;  and  blessed  be  Thy  name  for  the  specific  direc- 
tions Thou  hast  given  for  this  task.  (See  Jude  20,  21.) 
May  I  be  strenuous  and  constant  in  the  exercises  of  faith 
and  prayer  ;  and  direct  my  thoughts  aright,  that  I  may 
keep  my  affections  and  feelings  right.  Let  the  fountain 
be  pure,  and  pure  will  be  the  streams  that  flow  from 


PROVERBS  V.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  185 

it It  is  not  easy  to   gather  the   precise   meaning   of 

tlie  froward  tliat  occurs  so  often  in  our  translation,  as 
the  original  words  for  it,  both  in  Greek  and  Hebrew,  are 
so  various. 

Proverbs  v.  1-14. — Sec  how  closely  allied  throughout 
these  instructions  is  the  wisdom  here  enjoined  with 
moral  character  and  conduct.  The  evils  of  licentiousness 
form  a  frequent  theme  with  this  great  teacher,  and 
urgent  and  manifold  are  the  cautions  which  he  advances 
against  the  fascination  of  this  most  ruinous  and  deceit- 
ful of  all  the  vices.  We  have  often  thought  that  the 
indulgence,  with  its  consequent  shame  and  suffering, 
and  all  sorts  of  agony,  which  so  quickly  follow  it,  make 
out  a  miniature  exhibition  of  God's  method  of  adminis- 
tration in  the  analogous  relationship  which  He  has  in- 
stituted between  the  present  and  the  future  life.  Let 
us  not  deceive  ourselves  by  the  imagination  that  because 
our  tendencies  to  the  world  are  so  very  natural,  and 
many  of  them  with  so  little  power  to  alarm  the  conscience, 
and  stir  up  a  present  remorse  or  remonstrance  in  our 
bosoms — they  will  therefore  not  be  followed  up  by  the 
dire  and  dread  eternity  of  that  hell  into  which  are  cast 
all  they  who  forget  God.  For  the  same  process  is  exem- 
plified in  that  process,  when  man  without  compunction  at 
the  time,  gives  way  to  the  blandishments  of  sensuality; 
and  is  often  punished  even  here  with  the  ruin  of  all  his 
earthly  interests,  with  the  loss  of  character,  and  the  felt 
humiliation  of  his  own  disgrace — and  this  a  punishment 
lasting  at  least  as  a  whole  lifetime  here. 

15-23. — We  have  here  the  testimony  of  the  Old  to  a 
sentiment  given  in  the  New  Testament,  on  the  honour- 


186  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  vr. 

ableness  of  mari'iage Verse  16  does  not  seem  very  in- 
telligible, and  might  almost  be  construed  into  a  sanction 
for  polygamy.  From  tliis  passage,  however,  we  may 
learn  how  intense  the  affection  is  which  is  due  from  the 
husband  to  his  wife,  and  his  obligation  to  the  strictest 

faithfulness The  morale  of  Heb.  xiii.  4,  is  diffused  over 

the  verses  which  lie  before  us.  We  there  read  who  they 
are  whom  God  will  judge  ;  and  in  counterpart  to  this, 
we  here  read  "  that  the  ways  of  man  are  before  the  eyes 
of  the  Lord,  and  He  pondereth  all  his  goings/'  How  ex- 
pressive of  a  great  moral  law,  when  told  that  his  own 
iniquities  shall  take  the  wicked  himself  He  becomes 
the  slave  of  the  sins  in  which  he  indulges.  With  a  will 
that  might  lay  claim  at  the  outset  to  some  degree  of  sove- 
reignty, he  chose  sin,  but  it  soon  tyrannized  over  him, 
and  depriving  that  will  of  all  power  to  resist,  soon  re- 
duced it  to  a  state  of  helpless  and  irrecoverable  bondage. 
His  iniquities  seize  upon  him,  and  keep  him  as  it  were 
within  their  grasp,  so  that  he  is  holden  with  the  cords 
of  his  sins.  Tliis  is  pre-eminently  true  of  the  habits 
both  of  intemperance  and  licentiousness. 

CraigJiolm. 

Proverbs  vi.  1-5. — There  is  nothing  more  palpable  in 
this  Book  of  Proverbs  than  the  protest  which  it  lifts 
against  suretiship.  I  think  that  in  comparing  Scrip- 
ture with  Scripture  this  should  be  taken  into  account, 
when  adjusting  and  regulating  our  practice  by  the  direc- 
tions of  the  New  Testament  in  regard  to  giving.  There 
is  positively  nothing  which  I  should  do  with  greater  re- 
luctancy  and  aversion  than  to  give  my  name  as  a  surety 
—a  distinct  sort  of  giving  from  that  of  direct  and  im- 


PROVERBS  vr.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  187 

mediate  conveyance,  and  subject  I  should  hope  to  diiFer- 
ent  rules  and  different  principles.  Certain  it  is  that  to 
give  away  and  be  done  with  it,  leaves  one  in  a  wholly 
different  state  from  coming  under  an  engagement  to 
give  on  some  uncertain  contingency,  the  occurrence  of 
which  would  lay  upon  us  the  burden  of  a  responsibility 
that  we  would  far  rather  discharge  now  than  expose 
ourselves  to  the  hazard  of  its  being  brought  upon  us 
afterwards.  To  do  this  is  to  open  a  door  through  which 
a  crowd  of  anxieties  and  fears  would  enter  in,  and  make 
my  heart  the  prey  of  feelings  insupportable.  I  am  re- 
lieved to  think  that  the  sanctions  of  Scripture  are  so  much 
at  one  with  my  own  inclinations.  Certain  it  is  that 
from  the  moment  of  my  becoming  a  cautioner,  I  should 
not  be  able  to  give  sleep  to  my  eyes  or  slumber  to  my 
eye-lids.     Such  are  my  tendencies. 

6-19. — The  passage  respecting  the  ant  is  one  of  our 
Scripture  memorabilia. — The  lesson  of  the  passage  I  de- 
sire to  practise,  but  with  better  ends  than  I  have  done 
hitherto— not  to  be  slothful — but  what  ? — but  "  followers 
of  them  who  through  faith  and  patience  are  inheriting 
the  promises.''  Let  the  objects  of  my  diligence  be  higher 
than  they  wont.  Keeping  my  heart  with  all  diligence 
— hearkening  diligently — being  diligent  to  be  found  with- 
out spot  and  blameless — giving  all  diligence — (2  Pet.  i.  5) 
— to  realize  the  graces  and  virtues  of  the  Christian  life. 
The  world  call  me  an  industrious  man ;  but  has  my  in- 
dustr}^  been  directed  aright,  or  expended  on  ends  worthy 
of  it  ? ...  In  the  next  passage  the  character  pourtrayed 
seems  to  be  that  of  craft  and  policy  and  wily  malice — 
of  a  man  who  can  plot  and  contrive,  and  make  beckon- 
ings  ancl  secret  intimation  to  his  associates  in  wickedness. 


188  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  vi. 

It  is  remarkable  tliat  tlie  end  of  him  is  described  in 
the  same  terms  with  that  of  him  who  hardened  himself 
against   frequent   reproof    (Pro v.  xxix.  1.)     The  end  of 

both  is  sudden  and  irremediable  destiTiction In  the 

third  of  these  passages  the  hatred  of  God  is  denounced 
against  pride,  and  falsehood,  and  violence,  and  artful 
machination,  and  delight  in  executing  as  well  as  plot- 
ting mischief,  and  finally  the  stimng  up  of  quarrels — and 
quarrels  among  brethren,  too,  the  very  opposite  to  the 
vocation  of  the  peace-maker,  whose  delight  it  is  to  recon- 
cile enemies. 

20-35. — He  now  recurs  to  one  of  his  most  frequent 
lessons,  and  prefaces  it  with  a  general  monition  of  the 
greatest  importance — a  constant  remembrance  of  and 
reference  to  Grod's  law,  the  setting  of  this  continually 
before  us,  so  as  to  ensure  what  the  Romans  called,  a 
perpetual  will  to  do  good. — May  I  carry  this  about  with 
me,  0  Lord,  at  all  times  ;  and  be  ever  recurring  to  it  as 
the  standard  and  regulator  of  my  conduct  in  all  its  con- 
ceivable varieties.  With  this  preparation,  and  on  this 
principle,  let  me  trifle  not  with  the  fascinations  against 
which  he  here  warns  us.  Turn,  0  God,  my  sight  and 
eyes  from  viewing  vanity.  Let  me  combat  the  evil  of 
which  the  Mentor  here  speaks,  in  its  first  beginnings. 
Let  me,  in  this  department  of  human  conduct,  aim  at  a 
high  morality — the  morality  of  the  thoughts  and  afi'ec- 
tions.  For  both  looks  and  thoughts  are  forbidden  in 
verse  25,  even  as  both  are  by  the  Saviour  in  Matt.  v.  28. 
There  is  allowance  made  by  men  for  the  hunger  that  im- 
pels to  theft,  though  even  this  does  not  exempt  it  from 
punishment.  How  much  surer,  then,  the  punishment,  the 
disgrace,  and  the  vengeance — for  no   allowance  will  or 


PRovLRBS  VII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  189 

ought  to  be  made  for  the  strength  of  the  other  appetite, 
which  leads  to  adultery !  It  meets  even  here  with  a  day 
of  relentless  and  unsparing  vengeance ;  and  how  much 
more  in  the  great  day  of  the  manifestation  and  reckoning 
of  all  things. 

Proverbs  VII.  1-10. — To  "keep  the  commandments  and 
live''  is  still  what  takes  effect  under  the  new  Economy, 
but  in  a  different  way  from  what  "  Do  this  and  live " 
would  have  taken  effect  under  the  old.  The  latter  is 
now  exploded,  because  the  life  which  it  stipulated  was  of 
judicial  import,  and  he  who  obtained  it  won  for  himself  a 
right  to  life.  But  under  the  other  economy  it  is  not  the 
right  to  life  which  is  meant,  but  the  life  itself ;  and  obedi- 
ence is  life,  just  as  spiritual-mindedness  is  life  and  peace. 
How  closely  and  constantly  we  are  required  to  keep  by 
the  law — laid  up  in  our  hearts — guarded  with  all  ten- 
derness as  the  apple  of  one's  eye — kept  in  perpetual  re- 
membrance even  by  artificial  signs  fastened  upon  our 
fingers — written  on  the  tablet  of  the  inner  man!  All  is 
necessary  for  our  guardianship  from  the  allurements  of  a 
world  lying  in  wickedness,  and  ever  exciting  those  lusts 
which  war  against  the  soul.  To  keep  ourselves  safe,  we 
must  put  on  the  defensive  armour  both  of  wisdom  and 
principle,  wanting  which  a  simple  youth  is  here  repre- 
sented as  taken  in  the  toils  of  a  seducer A  dis- 
suasion against  the  temptations  of  licentiousness  forms 
one  of  the  strongest  and  most  frequent  lessons  in  the 
Book  of  Proverbs. 

11-27. — Both  the  fascinations  of  a  most  deceitful  and 
destructive  vice,  and  the  ruin  attendant  on  our  giving  way 
to  them,  are  here  most  strongly  and  fully  given.     Well 


190  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        proverbs  viii. 

are  we  made  to  understand  from  this  representation  what 
is  meant  by  the  phrase — "  the  deceit  fulness  of  sin/'  and 
how  lusts  are  said  to  be  deceitful.  And,  indeed,  apart 
from  the  external  blandishments  which  are  pourtrayed  in 
this  passage,  there  belongs  to  them  a  power  of  internal 
deception  the  most  fallacious  and  insinuating — and  this 
not  merely  because  of  their  strength,  and  of  their  fitness 
to  engross  the  whole  man  when  once  they  take  possession 
of  him,  and  so  to  shut  out  all  reflection  and  seriousness — 
these  counteractives  to  evil  passions  ;  but  because  of  their 
alliance  with,  and  the  affinity  which  they  bear  to,  the 
kindly  and  benevolent  and  good  feelings  of  our  nature. 
As  the  poet  says — himself  a  wild  and  wayward  and 
most  dangerously  seductive  writer — the  transition  is  a 
most  natural  one,  from  "  loving  much  to  loving  Avrong." 
— Let  all  such  aifections  be  sedulously  kept  at  bay,  and 
the  occasions  of  them  shunned  and  fled  from,  rather  than 
hazarded  and  tampered  with.  Let  them  never  be  wilfully 
encountered,  or  presumptuously  braved  and  bid  defiance 
to,  lest  the  victory  be  theirs  ;  and  no  sooner  do  they  win 
the  heart  than  they  war  against  the  soul.  They  bring 
forth  sin,  even  the  sin  which,  when  finished,  bringeth 
forth  death. 

Proverbs  viii.  1-9. — These  incessant  and  repeated  calls 
on  the  side  of  what  is  wise  and  good  remind  one  of  the 
Apostle's  saying,  that  "  to  vmie  the  same  things,  while  to 
me  not  grievous,  for  you  is  safe.'""  There  is  not  only  reiter- 
ation here,  but  the  reiteration  of  such  mere  generalities, 
as  that  knowledge  and  understanding  are  good  things, 
and  righteousness  is  a  good  thing,  and  truth  is  a  good 
thing.    In  fact,  the  object  of  preaching — and  this  Book  of 


PROVERBS  viii.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  191 

Proverbs,  as  well  as  of  Ecclesiastes,  may  be  regarded  as 
a  continuous  preaching — its  main  object  is  not  to  inform 
but  to  remind  ;  or,  in  tlie  language  of  Peter,  to  "  stir  up 
by  way  of  remembrance/'  It  is  to  recall  what,  if  not 
present  to  the  mind,  leaves  it  exposed  and  abandoned  to 
the  influences — often  bad — of  whatever  may  cast  up  or 
come  within  the  sphere  of  vision  along  one's  daily  history. 
The  sense  of  a  something  higher  and  more  enduring  than 
the  flitting  and  fugitive  objects  of  an  hour,  forms  a  stay 
and  a  presers^ative  to  the  soul ;  and  to  uphold  this  sense 
it  is  well  that  wisdom  should  assert  her  claims,  and  that 
we  should  in  practice  acknowledge  them,  to  be  listened  to 
at  all  times  and  upon  every  occasion — in  high  places  or 
on  the  wayside — abroad  in  the  city,  or  at  home  within  the 
privacy  of  our  own  habitations.  It  is  well  that  the  simple 
and  the  thoughtless  should  thus  be  summoned  from  their 
heedlessness,  and  so  ever  and  anon  be  solemnized  and 
made  serious. 

10-21. — Many  of  the  things  here  said  are  so  very  fami- 
liar that  they  are  utterly  devoid  of  all  the  peculiar  in- 
terest which  attaches  to  novelty ;  yet  the  repetition  of 
them,  if  only  attended  to  and  dwelt  upon,  has  a  good 
wholesome  efiect  on  the  moral  temperament  at  large. 
And  besides  these  generalities  of  statement  and  reflection 
which  are  occurring  constantly,  there  are  certain  specific 
things  put  forth  worthy  of  being  particularly  noticed — as 
here,  the  superiority  of  wisdom  to  wealth  and  all  things, 
and  also  the  power  of  wisdom  to  gain  wealth.  The  precise 
distinction  between  wisdom  and  prudence  it  would  not  be 
difiicult  to  define,  or  at  least  to  describe  ;  but  let  it  suflice 
us  for  the  present  to  remark  on  the  two-fold  exercise  of 
wisdom — first,  in  selecting  the  best  ends,  and  secondly, 


192  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        proverbs  viii. 

in  devising,  as  well  as  putting  into  actual  operation,  the 
best  means  for  tlie  attainment  of  them. — 0  that  my 
hatred  of  seen  evil  were  the  distinct  eiFect  of  my  fear  of 
the  unseen  God.  May  Christ  be  made  unto  me  wisdom 
and  strength — for  it  is  He  who  here  speaketh,  verse  14. 
. . .  Verse  15  is  a  notahile. — Let  me  love  Christ,  and  if  I 
love  Him  I  will  keej)  His  commandments ;  and  He  will 
love  me,  and  take  up  His  abode  with  me,  when,  as  the 
fruit  of  my  early  and  earnest  seeking,  I  shall  have  suc- 
ceeded in  finding  Him. 

22-36. — There  is  a  loftiness  of  representation  in  this 
passage  unsurpassed  in  all  other  literature,  profane  or 
sacred.  I  recognise  the  wisdom  here  set  forth,  as  the  Logos 
— even  Him  who  was  in  the  beginning  with  Grod,  and 
was  God — a  truth  made  clear  as  noon-day  in  our  later 
revelation,  but  not  the  less  impressive  or  at  all  diminished 
in  the  grandeur  of  its  aspect  and  bearing,  when  thus  made 
to  beam  upon  us  from  the  records  of  a  more  distant  and 
higher  antiquity.  "We  can  image  nothing  more  magnifi- 
cent than  the  description  here  given  of  the  Creation  of 
our  world,  when  God  by  His  word  made  the  heavens  and 
the  earth.  And  though  we  must  not  intrude,  beyond 
what  is  ^vritten,  into  the  unseen  things  of  God,  or  theorize 
on  the  interior  constitution  of  the  Deity — yet  we  do  feel 
an  interest  when  told,  as  we  are  here,  of  the  intense, 
though  by  us  ineffable,  social  enjoyment  that  was  felt 
and  harboured  there : — the  Father's  daily  delight  in  the 
Son,  and  the  Son  always  rejoicing  in  the  Father.  And 
how  nearly  should  it  come  home  to  ourselves,  that  He 
who  thus  rejoices  always  in  the  j^resence  and  the  intimate 
converse  of  God — that  He  rejoices,  too,  in  the  habitable 
parts  of  the  earth,  and  that  His  delights  are  with  the 


PROVERBS  IX  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  193 

sons  of  men. — Let  me,  therefore,  assure  my  heart  before 
Him.  Let  me  feel  the  whole  force  and  charai  of  this  high 
encouragement.  And  ever  from  this  time  forward  ma} 
I  hearken  unto  Christ — sitting  ^t  my  Master's  feet  to 
hear  all  His  lessons,  and  learn  so  as  to  keep  all  His  ways. 
If  I  find  Christ  I  find  God ;  and  on  the  virtue  of  Kk 
mediatorship  obtain  the  favour  of  the  Most  High. 

Proverbs  ix. — Fresh  from  the  last  chapter,  I  read 
this  as  if  Christ  and  His  ministers  w^ere  speaking  to  me. 
Let  me  come  in  at  the  voice  of  the  invitation  of  His  free 
and  universal  Gospel.  Let  me  receive  the  atonement  by 
eating  of  the  body  and  drinking  the  blood  of  the  Son  of 
Man.  But  I  am  not  only  told  what  I  have  to  come  to, 
but  what  I  must  forsake.  Let  me  in  turning  to  Christ 
forsake  the  foolish  and  live.  Give  me  the  life  and  peace 
of  those  who  are  spiritually  minded,  and  I  pray  for  the 
understandinof  that  knoweth  what  the  will  of  the  Lord  is. 
— Then  follow  some  important  specific  directions  full  of 
wisdom  ;  and  of  these,  I  stand  more  especially  in  need  of 
being  taught  when  to  refrain  from  the  task  of  remon- 
strating or  instructing,  and  this  because  of  the  perverse- 

ness  and  hopelessness  of  the  subject Verse  10  is  a  very 

high  notabile. — Give  me  the  fear  of  the  Lord  and  the 
knowledge  of  the  Holy  ;  that  as  the  effect  thereof,  I 
may  exemplify  the  alliance  which  obtains  between  duty 
and  wisdom,  between  goodness  and  tnith  —  The  chap- 
ter concludes  with  a  repetition  of  the  lesson  so  often 
given  against  one  of  the  most  flagrant  and  destructive 
of  all  sins — in  the  very  secrecy,  because  disgrace- 
fulness,  of  w^hich  there  lies  a  power  to  deceive  and  to 
fascinate. 

VOL.  III.  T 


194  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  x. 

Proverbs  x.  1-10. — Now  follow  what  are  expressly  en- 
titled, and  tlierefore  ought  to  be  more  strictly  held  as  the 
Proverbs  of  Solomon.  Perhaps  they  might  be  reduced  to 
a  few  leading  principle^  One  of  the  most  prominent  of 
these  is  the  effect  that  the  character  of  children  has  in 
ministering,  Avhether  to  the  comfort  and  joy,  or  to  the 
sorrow  and  heaviness  of  their  parents.  Then  there  are 
the  consequences  of  righteousness  and  wickedness  even 
in  this  world — more  palpable  then,  under  an  economy  of 
temporal  penalties  and  rewards.  The  characteristics  and 
results  both  of  diligence  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  sloth  on 
the  other,  form  very  common  topics  of  observation.  I 
should  say  of  the  first  clause  of  verse  7,  and  also  of  the 
first  clause  of  verse  9,  that  both  of  them  are  notabilia. 
. . .  One  does  not  just  see  how  the  two  clauses  of  verses  6 
and  8  respectively  are  counterparts  to  each  other,  or  what 
the  parallelism  is  between  them.  But  one  does  see  veiy 
clearly  the  mischief  here  denounced,  as  it  is  frequently, 
on  excess  and  volubility  of  talk.  Compare  verse  10  with 
ch.  vi.  13,  and  our  remark  on  the  latter. 

11-21. — We  have  here  another  very  prominent  lesson 
of  this  Book — the  regulation  of  the  tongue  and  the  mighty 
power  of  speech,  whether  for  good  or  evil.  The  blessing 
which  there  is  in  fit  and  seasonable  words,  is  beautifully 
represented  by  a  well  of  life,  which  issues  foith  its 
refreshing  and  salubrious  waters.  The  mouth  is  that 
through  which  wisdom,  or  its  opposite,  passes  in  efflux,  as 
touched  upon  in  verses  11,  13,  14,  18,  19,  20,  and  21. 
Yerse  19  is  an  important  notabile,  from  which  we  learn 
that  in  the  very  multitude  of  words  there  is  sin. — Teach 
me,  0  Lord,  to  bridle  my  tongue,  (James  i.  26,)  lest  my 
religion  shall  prove  itself  to  have  been  vain In  verses 


pnovERBs  X.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  195 

13,  20,  21,  goodness  in  efflux  is  contrasted  with  evil  not 
in  efflux,  but  in  its  place  or  within,  whereas  we  have  the 
opposite  of  this  in  verses  14  and  19 The  "  love  cover- 
ing all  sins/'  does  not  mean  that  the  charity  of  a  man 
will  avail  for  a  protection  against  his  own  sins,  but  that 
it  casteth  a  veil  over  the  sins  of  others.  This  may 
throw  light  on  James  v.  20,  and  1  Peter  iv.  8.  We  have 
also,  in  this  passage,  the  doctrine  of  the  teacher  on  the 
subject  of  discipline,  even  the  use  of  the  rod  so  much 
advocated  in  this  Book,  however  repudiated  in  modern 
times.  The  benefits  of  wealth  and  poverty  are  here 
strongly  set  forth  (verse  15,)  though  nowhere  do  we 
find  more  said  on  the  ruin  attendant  upon  ill-gotten 
wealth,  and  the  superiority  or  betterness  of  virtuous 
poverty.  The  tendency  of  righteous  labour  to  life  (verse 
16)  is  pregnant  with  instruction,  as  teaching  us  the  re- 
flex influence  of  good  deeds  upon  the  disposition  and 
state  of  the  soul ;  and  so  also  is  the  tendency  of  trans- 
gressions— which  are  the  fruit  of  a  wicked  character — to 
sin,  or  the  further  depravation  of  that  character.  The 
doctrine  both  of  moral  rewards  and  moral  penalties  is 
here  set  before  us. 

22-32. — I  should  make  verse  22  a  notabile.  If  we  seek 
first  the  kingdom  of  God  and  His  righteousness,  we  shall 
be  blessed  of  God  ;  and  all  other  things — not  things  sor- 
rowful but  things  desirable — will  be  added  to  us To 

make  a  mock  of  sin  and  to  sport  in  mischief,  are  alike 
perverse.  The  fear  of  punishment  suggested  by  a  re- 
morseful conscience  will  come  to  pass ;  but  the  desire  of 
the  righteous,  it  being  of  course  a  righteous  desire,  will 
be  granted.  He  who  hungereth  and  thirsteth  after 
righteousness  shall  be  filled.     The  prosperity  and  plans 


196  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  xr. 

of  the  wicked  will  come  to  nought ;  but  there  is  a  sta- 
bility in  righteousness,  for  as  magna  est  Veritas,  so  magna 
est  virtus,  and  it  will  prevail  everlastingly — the  senti- 
ment of  verse  25,  and  repeated  in  verse  30. — Then  fol- 
lows the  annoyance  of  a  faithless  messenger,  whether 
from  indolence  or  the  want  of  punctuality ;  after  which 
we  are  told  of  the  temporal  rewards  and  penalties  atten- 
dant upon  good  and  evil — in  length  of  days  and  the  ful- 
filment of  hope  to  the  one,  in  the  destruction  both  of 

hope  and  of  life  to  the  other "  The  way  of  the  Lord 

being  strength  to  the  upright,''  suggests  the  reflex  in- 
fluence which  the  steps  of  a  man's  outward  history  have 
upon  his  state,  or  of  conduct  upon  character — of  good 
deeds  in  building  up  and  establishing  that  goodness 
which  the  Lord  will  bless.     The  chapter  concludes  with 

axioms  on  the  frequent  topic  of  speech  in  both  its  kinds 

"Verse  18  of  this  chapter  pronounces  on  the  folly  whether 
of  hidden  or  outspoken  malice. 

Proverbs  xi.  1-9. — It  is  well  to  obseiTe  that  the  un- 
seen God  takes  the  part  that  is  here  ascribed  to  him  in 
regard  to  the  social  and  familiar  transactions  of  men. 
Wliat  is  wanted  is  that  we  should  not  so  dissociate  God 
from  the  ordinary  business  of  the  world.  Apart  from 
the  thought  of  Him,  we  should  ourselves  abominate  a 
false  balance,  and  delight  in  strict  equity. — My  God,  am 
I  forming  after  Thine  image,  even  though  there  be  so 
little  of  direct  reference  to  Thyself,  in  the  exercise  of 
those  moral  feelings  and  the  maintenance  of  that  moral 
conduct,  which  are  conforaiable  to  Thy  law  ? — Then  fol- 
lows the  testimony  of  Solomon  against  pride  and  in  fa- 
vour of  humility — a  lesson  of  frequent  recurrence  in  this 


PR0YERB3  xr.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  197 

Book.  There  is  also  a  general  contrast  between  right- 
eousness and  wickedness,  in  that  the  former  directs  and 
delivers,  while  the  latter  destroys.  Uprightness  is  our 
treasure  in  heaven,  and  it  is  also  the  best  treasure  upon 
earth,  and  without  which  riches  profit  not.  The  righteous 
is  delivered  out  of  trouble  by  death,  or  often  in  life  is 
rescued  from  the  plagues  and  the  perplexities  in  which 
the  wncked  often  succeed  him,  though  they  sought  to  in- 
volve him  therein,  (verse  3.) 

10-21. — Passing  over  the  generalities,  and  what  may  be 
termed  the  almost  identical  propositions  of  this  passage, 
we  remark  from  it — first,  on  the  enduring  popularity  of 
virtue ;  and  then  on  its  subservience  to  the  wellbeing  of 

a  state  or  a  commonwealth The  despising  in  verse  12 

includes  the  speaking  contemptuously  of  a  neighbour,  in 
counterpart  to  which  we  are  told  of  wisdom,  that  what- 
ever ground  there  might  be  for  thinking  meanly  of  others 
it  restrains  the  utterance  of  such  thoughts  —  The  last 
clause  of  verses  14  and  15,  are  both  well  entitled  to  rank 
as  notabilia.  In  verse  16  we  meet  with  an  expression  of 
the  homage  so  plentifully  given  throughout  this  Book  to 
feminine  worth  and  excellence.  The  strength  of  man 
might  enable  him  to  acquire  and  retain  w^ealth ;  but  the 
goodness  of  woman  ensures  for  her  the  nobler  reward  of 
honour.  In  verse  17  we  are  told  of  the  inherent  health 
and  happiness  that  there  is  in  the  morally  right — the  in- 
herent wretchedness  and  discomfort  of  the  morally  wrong. 
Mercy,  over  and  above  the  direct  benefit  which  it  confers 
upon  its  own  object,  casts  back  a  reflex  benefit  and  bless- 
ing on  him  who  exercises  it.  Cruelty,  besides  the  pain 
which  it  inflicts  upon  its  victims,  troubles  and  agonizes 
the  man  s  own  spirit.    Let  us,  therefore,  sow  righteousness, 


198  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  xi. 

and  we  shall  reap  tlie  life  to  which  it  tendeth — a  life 
that  has  in  it  the  worth  and  endurance  of  a  blissful  eter- 
nity. The  opposite  is  the  effect  of  our  performing  and 
pursuing  evil.  No  conspiracy  of  men  can  arrest  or  avert 
those  established  tendencies  of  the  good  and  the  evil,. or 
change  the  dispensations  of  Him  who  abominates  iniquity 
and  delights  in  uprightness. 

22-31. — The  want  of  discretion  may  imply  both  a  want 
of  sense  and  character,  so  as  to  mark  out  a  person  who  is 

profligate  as  well  as  foolish Verse  24  is  a  notabile, 

pointing  out  the  present  and  earthly  reward,  or  reward  in 
kind,  which  is  attendant  on  liberality — whereas  verse  25 
points  more  to  the  spiritual  things  given  back  to  the  soul 
for  the  carnal  things  which  it  hath  willingly  parted  with. 
In  this  view  its  last  clause  is  a  pre-eminent  notabile.  God 
in  return  not  only  enriches  and  ministers  food  to  such, 
but  increases  the  fruits  of  their  righteousness.  (See  2 
Cor.  ix.  6-11.) — There  is  a  keeping  up  of  corn  that  en- 
riches the  holder  beyond  what  even  political  economy 
demonstrates  to  be  for  the  good  of  the  community.  Be- 
side the  more  obvious  and  general  aj^horisms  of  this  pas- 
sage, let  me  remark  on  the  evil  that  cometh  to  him  who 
troubleth  his  own  house — the  habit,  it  is  formerly  said,  of 
one  who  is  greedy  of  gain,  and  inherits  only  corruption. 
The  natural  and  rightful  subjection  of  folly  to  wisdom  is 
affirmed  in  the  last  clause  of  verse  29 I  like  exceed- 
ingly the  images,  as  they  occur,  of  the  tree  and  the  well, 
to  represent  the  excellence  of  goodness,  both  in  itself  and 
in  its  produce  or  fruit. — Give  me,  0  Lord,  the  wisdom  of 
winning  souls.  0  that  I  knew  how  to  impress  savingly 
the  hearts  and  minds  of  my  children  !  But  while  immor- 
tality is  the  great  and  final  landing-place  to  which  I 


PROVERBS  XII.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  199 

should  mainly  look  and  mainly  provide  for,  botli  as  to 
myself  and  others,  let  me  forget  not  that  righteousness 
has  a  recompense  even  here,  or  in  the  earth. 

Proverbs  xii.  1-14 — There  are  moral  truisms  in  this 
passage,  too,  which  we  shall  not  repeat ;  but  would  advert 
to  his  salutary  lesson  of  welcoming  reproof,  and  to  the 
homage  he  again  renders  to  the  worth  and  importance  of 
female  goodness,  and  the  misery  which  he  ascribes  to  our 
being  associated  with  the  opposite — thus  evincing  the  vast 

influence  of  the  sex  in  life  and  in  society I  understand 

verse  6  to  mean  that  the  wicked  deceive  their  victims  into 
a  false  security,  for  the  purpose  of  destroying  them ;  but 
that  they  are  often  delivered  from  violence  and  wiles  by 
the  cautions  and  informations  of  the  righteous.  He  that 
is  despised  because  of  a  perverse  spirit  is  surely  not  better, 
morally,  than  he  that  lacketh  bread — though  a  self-con- 
ceited poor  man  cannot  be  estimated  very  highly.  The 
next  lesson,  however,  is  new,  and  most  obviously  and  un- 
equivocally a  good  one — that  of  mercy  to  animals ;  and 
indeed  cruelty,  whether  to  man  or  beast,  is  one  of  the 

most  hateful  features  of  wickedness The  good  and  evil 

of  which  the  tongue  may  be  the  instrument,  are  again 
touched  upon.  Verse  5  may  intimate  that  the  acts  of  the 
outer  take  their  first  origin,  and  derive  their  character 
from  the  thoughts  of  the  inner  man — a  lesson  thus  of  spi- 
ritual morality. 

]  0-28. — It  is  a  most  important  warning  that  we  should 
guard  against  the  self-delusion  of  being  right  in  our  own 
eyes ;  and  it  is  well  to  be  told  of  the  folly  of  outspoken- 
ness. There  is  great  wisdom  and  great  respectability  in 
the  right  command  of  one's  lips,  and  in  maintaining  a 


200  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        proverbs  xiii. 

prudent  silence.  The  blessings  and  felicities  of  wholesome 
and  well-timed  speech  are  beautifully  set  forth: — "The 
tongue  of  the  wise  is  health/'  and  "  a  good  word  maheth 
the  heart  glad.''  To  every  Christian  mind  there  is  great 
oy  in  the  employment,  and  more  particularly  if  it  succeed, 

jf  peace-making The  open  proclamations  of  folly  are 

ever  and  anon  rebuked  with  great  severity.     The  contrast 

between  diligence  and  sloth  is  also  very  often  given 

Verse  26  is  a  notabile.  And  from  life  being  said  to  be 
in  the  way  of  righteousness,  I  should  urge  the  lesson,  that 
the  deeds  of  the  hand  have  a  reflex  influence  on  the  state 
jf  the  heart.  There  is  life  in  spiritual  mindedness  ;  and 
it  serves  to  aliment  this  life  to  walk  in  the  way  of  obedi- 
ence.— My  God,  put  tmth  into  my  inward  parts.  Save 
me  from  all  that  is  abomination  in  Thy  sight.  Save  me 
from  those  deceitful  lusts  that  lead  to  deceitful  practices. 

Proverbs  xiii.  1-12. — We  have  here  several  of  his  cus- 
romary  lessons — as  filial  obedience  and  docility — the  im- 
nortance  of  the  government  of  the  tongue — the  evils  of 
loth  and  good  effects  of  industry — the  characteristics  and 
)nsequences  of  righteousness  and  wickedness.     He  then 
aoralizes  on  virtuous  poverty  and  ill-gotten  wealth — t cli- 
ng us  that  morally  and  substantially  the  rich  man  might 
•e  altogether  destitute,  while  the   poor   man  is  full   of 
reasure.     The  contrast  is  between  one  that  maketh  him- 
self rich  and  one  that  maketh  himself  poor;  hinging, 
herefore,  not  on  the  respective  states,  but  on  the  processes 
-vhich  led  to  them — the  former,   it  may  be   presumed, 
herefore,  amassing  his  fortune  unworthily ;  the  latter  re- 
ducing himself  to  poverty  by  his  liberalities  and  sacrifices. 
— Give  me  to  follow  the  example  of  Him  who,  though 


PROVERBS  XIV.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  201 

rich,  yet  became  poor Verse  8  may  mean  that  tne  rich 

man  is  apt  to  he  reckoned  with  by  tyrants  and  extor- 
tioners, and  obliged  to  pay  a  ransom  for  his  Ufe  ;  whereas 
the  poor  man,  of  whom  they  can  make  nothing,  is  let  alone 
by  them  and  not  quarrelled  with.  Pride  is  denounced  as 
the  source  of  contention.     The  contrast  is  again  repeated 

between  ill-gotten  and  honestly  made  wealth Verse 

12  is  a  notabile,  and  strikingly  descriptive  and  beautiful. 
13-25. — Save  me,  0  Lord,  from  the  heedlessness  of  Thy 
word  ;  and  give  me  to  stand  in  awe  of  Thy  commandment. 
. . .  Verse  14  is  also  a  beautiful  maxim.  Wisdom  and  un- 
derstanding are  often  spoken  of  as  being  a  moral  quality, 
and  they  are  so  looked  to  in  verse  15.  Passing  over  the 
generalities  and  moral  truisms  of  this  passage,  let  me  in- 
stance the  simple  beauty  of  the  first  clause  in  verse  19. 
The  aphorism  on  the  subject  of  good  and  evil  company  is 
one  of  great  weight  and  of  frequent  occurrence.  The  tem- 
poral prosperity  of  the  righteous  is  also  remarked  upon. 
What  pregnancy  and  force  in  the  obser\^ations  of  Matthew 
Henry,  even  on  the  most  apparently  trite  of  these  maxims 
• — such  as  some  would  denominate  trivial !  "  Tlie  dili- 
gence of  the  poor  maketh  rich,"  while  the  greatest  estates 
maybe  dissipated  by  want  of  management. — Then  follows 
the  recommendation  of  corporal  punishment  for  the  pur- 
poses of  discipline,  much  advocated  in  this  Book ;  and 
very  irequent  is  the  ascription  of  their  respective  blessings 
to  the  good  and  the  evil. 

Proverbs  xiv.  1-11. — We  have  a  very  just  and  impor- 
tant testimony  here  to  the  importance  of  the  wife  and  of 

good  housewifery The  speech  of  a  proud  man  inflicts 

a  blow  upon  others,  but  which  in  the  end  recoils  upon 


202  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        proverbs  xiv. 

himself The  "  cleanness  of  the  crib ''  here  may  denote 

its  emptiness,  even  as  cleanness  of  teeth  is  a  Scriptural 
expression  for  famine — so  that  here  we  have  a  testimony 
to  the  usefulness  of  the  inferior  animals. — Then  follows  one 
of  the  many  nearly  identical  propositions  in  this  Book,  the 
use  of  which  I  may  vindicate  afterwards  —  The  moral 
quality  of  the  understanding,  spoken  of  in  the  last  clause 
of  verse  6,  is  obvious  from  its  antithesis  to  the  first  clause. 
. . .  The  direction  of  verse  7  is  a  highly  important  one,  and 
should  prove  a  wholesome  counteractive  to  a  tendency  of 
my  own — which  is  to  persevere  in  argument  with  those 
who  are  obviously  beyond  its  reach  —  Yerse  9  is  a  nota- 
bile  ;  and  should  impress  the  flagrancy  of  our  making  light 
of  sin — far  too  serious  a  subject  for  levity  or  ludicrous 

emotion Yerse  10  is  also  a  notabile.     We  can  make 

no  adequate  conveyance  either  of  our  sufferings  and  wrongs 
on  the  one  hand,  or  of  our  peculiar  tastes,  and  the  gratifi- 
cation of  these,  on  the  other,  to  the  apprehension  of  a 
fellow-mortal. — Let  us  offer  them  up  to  Him  who  know- 
eth  all. 

12-24. — Yerse  12  is  one  of  the  most  impressive  warnings 
against  self-deceit  which  occurs  in  Scripture. — My  God, 

save  me  from  the  deceitfulness  of  sin  and  self There  is 

a  laughter  that  is  wholly  disjoined  from  happiness 

"\Yliat  a  world  of  sound  theology  lies  in  the  deliverance  of 
verse  14 — telling  us  how  much  the  rewards  and  punish- 
ments of  the  Divine  administration  lie  in  the  subjective 
state,  apart  from  the  objective  circumstances  !  Tlie  need 
of  circumspection  is  well  stated  in  verse  15  ;  and  the 
considerate  wariness  of  wisdom  placed  in  the  next  verse 
in  forcible  contrast  with  the  impetuosity  and  bluster  of  a 
fool. — May  I  be  slow  to  anger,  0  God,  as  Thou  art ;  and, 


PROVERBS  XIV.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  203 

at  the  same  time^  let  not  mine  be  the  cahnness  of  deli- 
berate malignity.  Give  me,  0  Lord,  not  to  despise  but  to 
honour  all  men — and  with  special  respect  for  and  interest 
in  the  poor.  How  I  delight  in  meeting  here  Avith  that 
blessed  conjunction  of  mercy  and  truth  which  occurs  so 
frequently  in  the  Psalms  ! . . .  The  preference  of  work  to 
talk,  as  expressed  in  verse  23,  is  in  keeping  with  the 
whole  spirit  and  character  of  this  Book,  which,  though  sub- 
stantially and  throughout  spiritual,  bears  a  complexional 
resemblance  to  the  utilitarianism  of  Benjamin  Franklin 
and  Jeremy  Bentham.  The  riches  which  enable  the  wise 
man  to  set  off  and  illustrate  his  character  the  more,  only 
serve  to  make  folly  all  the  more  conspicuous  and  dan- 
gerous. 

June,  1846. 

25-35. — Fear  and  confidence  are  here  enjoined,  as  they 
are  frequently  in  Scripture  ;  and  the  explanation  of  their 
consistency  is  not  difficult.  I  very  much  like  the  imagciy 
of  fountains  and  wells  of  living  water,  as  struck  out  in 
the  mind  itself,  and  sending  forth  the  streams  of  moral 
and  spiritual  health  which  refresh  the  soul,  and  give  fruit- 
fulness  to  the  whole  life  and  behaviour.  One  can  under- 
stand how — in  these  days  of  war,  and  when  a  people  too 
numerous  for  the  resources  at  home,  but  unrestrained  from 
the  practice  of  invasion,  without  ceremony,  on  their  neigli- 
bours — how  the  multitude  of  their  people  should  be  so 
valued  by  the  marauding  potentates  Avho  were  over  them. 
Slowness  to  Tv^ath  is  at  all  times  strongly  and  favourably 
contrasted  with  hastiness  of  spirit  in  this  Book.  Tlie  true 
seat  of  virtue,  as  being  in  the  heart,  is  a  ver\^  precious 
lesson.  The  last  clause  of  verse  32  is  a  notabile.  The 
religiousness  of  having  respect  unto  the  poor  is  uniformly 


204  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         proverbs  xv. 

nsisted  on ;  and  so  is  tlie  superiority  of  a  wise  silence  to 
the  unbridled  effusiveness  of  all  that  is  in  the  heart  of 

fools Verse  34  is  a  very  high  notabile. — 0  God,  do 

Thou  reform  our  nation,  and  bless  it  with  a  great  moral 
and  spiritual  revival. 

Proverbs  xv.  1-9. — Verse  1  is  a  notabile  for  keeping 
us  always  in  mind  of  the  beauty  and  benefit  of  a  soft 
answer. — 0  that  my  tongue  were  at  all  times  under  the 

regimen  of  wisdom  and  principle Verse  3  is  one  of  the 

highest  among  the  notabilia  of  Scripture. — My  God,  I  pray 
for  a  sense  of  Thy  constant  and  universal  presence ;  and 
0  that  it  had  a  restraining  effect  upon  me  when  placed 
among  the  miserable  temptations  to  that  which  is  miser- 
ably and  degradingly  wrong Tliere  is  a  frequently  re- 
curring imageiy  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs,  which  always 
pleases  and  refreshes  me — when  the  moral  is  illustrated 
xnd  set  forth  by  the  material — as  the  "  wholesome  tongue '"' 
by  a  "  tree  of  life.''  O  what  a  rebuke  is  administered,  and 
what  an  alarm  should  be  felt,  when  told  that  the  sacrifice 
of  the  wicked  is  an  abomination  unto  the  Lord  ! — Pardon 
mine  iniquity,  0  Lord,  for  it  is  great ;  and  let  mine  hence- 
forward be  the  prayer  of  the  upright.  And  may  I  know 
what  it  is  to  delight  in  God,  that  God  may  delight  in  me. 
Save  and  sanctify  me,  0  Lord.  Often  have  I  fallen  into  a 
deed  of  wickedness  ;  but  let  not  mine  be  a  way  of  wicked- 
ness— ^whereas,  let  me  both  follow  after  righteousness  and 
abound  in  the  fruits  thereof  Let  the  blood  of  Christ 
cleanse  me  from  the  sin  that  I  have  lapsed  into,  but  with 
the  effect  that  hencefonvard  I  may  sin  not. 

10-22. — I  need  correction :  may  I  kiss  the  rod.  Enable 
ne  to  judge  myself,  and  then  I  shall  not  be  judged. 


PROVERBS  XV.  DAILY  SCftlPtURE  READINGS.  205 

And  0  may  I  ever  feel  the  control  of  that  Omniscience 
whose  eyelids  do  tiy  the  children  of  men :  He  to  whom 
Hades  and  the  deepest  places  are  altogether  known,  He 
knoweth  the  hearts  of  us  all — the  discemer  of  the  most 
secret  thoughts  and  intents,  and  before  whom  all  things 
are  naked  and  open. — May  I  rejoice  in  the  Lord.  May  I 
in  Him  have  a  perpetual  feast  of  the  affections.  And  0 
let  the  sorrow  which  now  weighs  upon  me  be  of  the  godly 
sort,  working  repentance  unto  salvation,  and  leading  me 
to  that  peace  and  joy  in  believing,  which  might  beam 
forth  with  beneficial  influence  upon  those  of  my  own 
household,  and  all  within  whose  reach  of  observation  I 

am  placed Verses  1 6  and  1 7  are  notabilia  ;  and  I  desire 

to  have  that  godliness,  with  contentment,  which  is  great 
gain.  Let  me  be  rich  in  love — ^the  love  both  of  God  and 
of  my  neighbour ;  and  more  especially  in  the  pure  affec- 
tions of  a  pure  and  happy  home.  It  is  well  to  be  told 
that  if  but  diligent  and  righteous,  the  way  will  be  made 
plain  before  us.  On  the  subject  of  filial  duty  and  respect 
I  have  much  to  be  forgiven.  Let  not,  0  Lord,  my  taste 
for  the  ludicrous  displace  better  and  higher  things ;  and 
give  me  also  to  observe  a  right  deference  for  the  opinion 
of  my  fellows,  seeing  that  in  the  multitude  of  counsellors 
there  is  safety. 

23-33. — Always  beautiful  as  well  as  good  on  the  regu- 
lation of  the  tongue  !  0  that  every  word  I  uttered  were 
spoken  in  due  season. — May  my  conversation,  0  God,  be 
in  heaven,  and  my  affections  set  on  the  things  above,  that 
I  may  be  rescued  from  the  hell  beneath,  where  all  who 
die  in  the  flesh  shall  spend  their  eternity.  0  my  God, 
enable  me  to  command  my  thoughts.  Give  me  to  feel 
the  control  of  Thy  will  over  the  inner  man.     Let  me  aim 


20G  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        proverbs  xvr. 

at  the  religion  of  the  heart ;  and  grant  that  my  contem- 
plations be  directed  aright,  and  then  shall  I  feel  aright 

Wliat  wisdom  on  the  affairs  of  life  do  we  find  in  verse  27  ! 
"We  have  noticed  striking  examples  of  the  truth  of  its 
aphorism.  Let  the  bribery  of  no  offers  or  temptations 
whatever  seduce  me  from  the  consistencies  of  the  Christian 
profession.  0  that  my  heart  were  such  as  to  secure  a 
right  converse  both  with  God  and  man ;  then  should  I 
answer  acceptably  and  pray  acceptably.  And  yet  much 
of  our  comfort  cometh  from  without — even  from  the  sen- 
sible objects  and  elements  of  external  nature.  Let  me 
ever  rejoice  with  thankfulness  in  the  beauty  of  landscapes, 
in  the  greetings  of  affection,  in  the  reports  of  the  good 
that  exists,  or  the  good  that  is  done  throughout  the  world. 
Let  me  have  the  fear  of  God,  which  is  the  beginning  of 
wisdom,  and  so  humble  myself  that  I  may  be  exalted. 

Proverbs  xvi.  1-9. — Let  verse  1  be  my  confidence  when 
called  on  to  speak.  Let  me  not  be  careful,  but  tiTist  in 
Him  who  prepares  the  heart,  and  in  the  Holy  Ghost  who 
gives  and  directs  the  utterance.  How  verse  2  should  come 
home  to  the  conscience  ! — Save  me  from  self-deceit,  and 

give  me  a  solemn  feeling  of  the  Judge  who  is  above Yerse 

S  is  one  of  the  most  precious  notabilia  in  Scripture. — Lord, 

may  I  ever  act  upon  it The  glimpse  that  is  afforded 

by  verse  4  opens  our  way  so  far  into  the  transcendental 
theology.  There  is  no  possible  conspiracy  that  can  be  of 
effect  against  Him  who  sitteth  on  high.  0  for  the  mercy 
and  the  truth,  both  objective  and  subjective,  that  will  de- 
liver me  from  evil.  Yerse  7  is  also  a  very  precious  nota- 
bile. — My  God,  deliver  me,  through  the  medium  of  my  own 
confomiity  to  Thy  blessed  will,  from  the  power  and  malice 


PROVERBS  XVI.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  207 

of  all  my  adversaries.  How  precious,  also,  is  verse  9 — a 
notabile  most  assuredly!  0  that  I  mixed  more  of  prayer 
and  dependence  on  God,  with  my  own  devisings.  Estab- 
lish my  thoughts,  0  God,  and  direct  my  steps,  (verses  3 
and  9.)    Give  me  the  godliness  with  contentment  of  verse  8. 

10-19. — It  was  quite  in  keeping  that  Solomon  should 
moralize  on  kings  also.  He  had  full  experience  of  their 
power,  and  of  the  mighty  influence  which  either  their 
countenance  or  their  displeasure  had  on  the  minds  of  those 
by  whom  they  were  suiTounded — a  variety  of  experience 
in  human  nature  that  is  quite  exemplified  in  our  o^vn  day 
;. — the  chann  of  court  favour — the  mortification  of  court 
disappointment  or  neglect.  He  presupposes,  in  some  of 
these  verses,  that  the  kings  are  good — a  supposition  veri- 
fied, it  may  be,  by  his  own  consciousness  up  to  the  time 

at  which  he  wrote  these  Proverbs The  last  clause  of 

verse  12  is  a  notabile.  Tlie  power  of  a  wise  man  to  pacify 
the  wrath  of  a  king  is  what  he  himself  may  often  have 
experienced,  so  as  to  strengthen  his  admiration,  and 
more  abundantly  call  forth  his  eulogies  of  wisdom.  I 
should  say  that  the  last  clause  of  verse  1 7  was  also  a  no- 
tabile ;  and  the  lesson  I  should  read  and  give  forth  from 
it  is — the  reflex  influence  of  the  outward  walk  and  way  on 
the  inner  man  :  "  He  that  keepeth  his  way  preserveth  his 
soul" — an  admirable  text  for  a  sermon.  The  condemna- 
tion of  pride,  and  praise  of  humility,  occur  veiy  frequently 
among  the  moral  reflections  of  this  Book,  as  well  as  the 
humiliation  that  awaits  the  former,  and  the  advancement 
to  which  the  latter  is  often  carried. — "  He  that  humbleth 
himself  shall  be  exalted." 

20-33. — ObseiTe  how  tnist  in  the  Lord,  and  handling 
a  matter  wisely,  both  consist  together,  and  each  lias  a 


208  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       provkrbs  xvir. 

distinct  blessing  annexed  to  it.  The  heart  is  the  well- 
spring  of  understanding  or  wisdom,  and  the  tongue  the 
organ  for  its  conveyance  to  others ;  and  both  are  highly 
signalized  among  these  Proverbs — where  we  often  read 
both  of  the  sweetness  and  the  wholesomeness  of  rightly 

chosen  words Verse  25  is  a  notabile. — Save  me  from 

my  own  counsel,  and  the  sight  of  my  own  eyes,  0  God. 
...Verse  26  has  a  spiritual  application — not  to  be  sloth- 
ful in  sowing  aright,  that  we  may  reap  aright ;  for  every 
man  shall  receive  the  fruit  of  his  own  labour  and  his 
own  doings.  Violence  and  deceit,  through  the  organ 
of  the  mouth,  stirs  up  many  a  dissension  in  society.  I 
have  no  claim  whatever  to  my  hoaiy  head  being  a  crown 
of  glory:  henceforward.  Lord,  may  I  be  found  in  the 
way  of  righteousness.  Thou  knowest  my  delinquencies, 
and  the  sad  misgiving  of  heart  to  which  they  have  given 
rise.  Disappoint  my  fears,  0  God,  and  let  the  remainder 
of  my  days  be  consecrated  to  Thy  sendee,  and  to  a  busy 
preparation  for  heaven.  I  am  quickly  irascible :  I  have 
not  attained  the  greatness  of  self-command  over  my  own 
spirit.  I  pray  for  this  attainment ;  and  do  Thou  enable 
me  not  only  to  repel  irritation,  but  also  despondency — or 
that  sori'ow  of  this  world  which  worketh  death.  Self-rule 
is  a  mightier  achievement  than  a  victory  over  outward 
enemies. — 0  may  I  recognise  Thee  as  the  Sovereign  Dis- 
poser of  all  things — ascribing  nought  whatever  to  chance, 
but  ever  looking  upward  to  the  God  who  worketh  all 
in  all. 

Proverbs  xvii.  1-14. — Better  is  peace  with  poverty 
than  wealth  in  the  midst  of  war.  Better  is  wisdom  in 
a  low  station  than  a  high  station  in  the  occupation  of 


PROVERBS  xvir.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  209 

wickedness  and  folly. — Try  me,  0  God,  and  guide  me  in 
tlie  right  way ;  but  0  suffer  me  not  to  be  tried  beyond 
what  I  can  bear.  May  Thine  be  a  discipline  of  mercy 
as  well  as  wisdom.  While  I  abhor  evil  let  me  have  re- 
spect unto  poverty :  and  may  I  rejoice  not  either  in  ini- 
quity or  distress.  My  God,  I  pray  for  a  blessing  on  my 
children,  that  they  may  be  a  credit  and  comfort  to  me ; 
and  grant.  Lord,  that  in  my  old  age  I  may  bring  no  dis- 
grace upon  my  family.  Solomon  gives  forth  the  lessons 
of  secular  as  well  as  sacred  wisdom — as  in  speaking  of 
the  charm  and  efficacy  of  gifts "To  cover  a  trans- 
gression'' is  to  keep  secret  the  faults  of  others.  Love 
disposes  to  this,  and  its  tendency  is  to  love;  while  the  op- 
posite habit  leads  to  contention. — Give  me  to  feel  reproof 

and  to  be  admonished  by  it The  cruel  messenger  sent 

against  those  who  rebel,  is  the  signal  judgment  which  at 

length  is  sure  to  overtake  him Let  us  shun  the  encoun- 

ter  with  him  who  at  once  is  senseless  and  insensate.  Let 
us  beware  too  of  ungrateful  returns — nay,  even  of  retalia- 
tion; and  as  much  as  lieth  in  us  let  us  live  peaceably  with 
all  men,  preventing  quarrels  if  at  all  possible. 

15-28. — Let  me  not  call  evil  good  nor  good  evil.  Man 
is  entrusted  with  the  means  of  getting  wisdom  ;  but  he 
will  not  get  it  if  he  have  no  heart  to  it.  It  is  only  he 
who  seeketh  that  findeth. — Give  me  to  bear  the  burdens 
of  others ;  and  forgive  my  impatience  at  the  tasks  which 
are  imposed  upon  me.  Yet  let  me  mix  prudence  with 
duteousness,  avoiding  in  particular  the  suretiship  which  I 
have  always  hated,  preferring  to  be  a  giver  or  a  creditor 
rather  than  a  cautioner.  Let  me  beware  of  contention, 
and  also  of  the  stateliness  which  betokens  pride  and 
leads  to  a  humiliating  overthrow.     Let  the  heart  and  the 

VOL.  HI. 


210  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,      proverbs  xviii. 

tongue  be  alike  under  tlie  restraint  and  regulation  of 
principle. — My  God,  make  all  my  children  wise  unto  sal- 
vation. Give  me  to  be  clieei-fui  in  tlie  midst  of  tbem, 
but  so  as  tliat  tliey  may  be  led  to  prize  the  way  of 
pleasantness  and  path  of  peace  —  The  last  clause  of  verse 
24  is  a  notabile.  I  wish  it  were  applied  to  the  business  of 
Churches,  so  as  to  make  them  more  intent  than  heretofore 
on  Home  Missions — and  this  without  prejudice  to  the 
habit  of  doing  good  unto  all  men  as  we  have  opportunity. 
I  like  the  repeated  testimonies  given  in  this  Book  to  the 
self-command  and  the  wisdom  of  silence.  Let  my  un- 
derstanding have  the  entire  mastery  over  my  tongue  ; 
and  let  me  ever  be  able  to  bridle  and  restrain  the  im- 
petus which  would  lead  to  the  effusions  whether  of  vanity 
or  violence. 

Proverbs  xviii.  1-12. — I  am  inclined  to  the  commend- 
atorv^  interpretation  of  verse  1.  In  our  search  after  wis- 
dom let  us  shut  out  all  that  would  distract  our  attention 
from  it Verse  2,  last  clause,  is  a  notabile. — Let  me  re- 
strain the  vanity  or  the  excessive  appetite  for  sympathy 
which  inclines  me  to  lay  myself  bare  before  the  eyes  of 
my  fellow-men.  Let  me  feel  the  disgracefulness  of  sin  as 
well  as  its  wickedness ;  and  so  as  ever  to  prefer  and  hon- 
our the  righteous  above  the  transgressors  of  God's  law. 
How  beautifully  are  both  the  fountain  of  wisdom  in  a 
man  and  its  efflux,  described  in  verse  4! — Let  me  set 
more  store  than  I  have  done  hitherto  on  the  importance 
of  well-directed  speech  ;  and  be  more  alive  to  the  mis- 
chief that  might  be  done  both  to  myself  and  others  by 
gossiping  and  calumnious  talk.  Give  me  to  feel  a  re- 
sponsibility for  words  as  well  as  works.      They  can  set 


PROVERBS  XVIII.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  211 

the  world  on  fire  ;  and  strike  very  deeply  and  agonizingly 
into  the  sensibilities  of  our  nature.  Let  me  avoid  sloth, 
and  what  is  very  deceiving — busy  idleness.  May  I  turn 
my  remaining  days  in  this  world  to  the  best  account, 
both  for  my  ovm  salvation  and  that  of  others.  And  0 
let  me  ever  trust  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.  To  Him  may 
I  ever  resort  as  my  continual  habitation.  May  He  be 
my  strong  tower ;  and  righteous  both  in  Christ  and  as 
Christ,  (1  John  iii.  7,)  may  I  rejoice  in  my  safety  under 
God  as  my  helper,  and  not  fear  what  either  man  or 
Satan  can  do  unto  me.  Let  me  trust  not  in  uncertain 
riches ;  should  they  increase  let  me  not  set  my  heart 
upon  them.  Let  me  beware  of  the  pride  of  life ;  and 
stand  in  humility  and  fear  when  I  think  of  the  law  so 
often  announced  in  Scripture,  according  to  which  pride 
and  desti-uction,  lowliness  and  honour,  so  often  succeed 
each  other. 

13-24. — Let  me  not  be  precipitate  in  my  judgments  or 

deliverances,  lest  I  should  be  ashamed  of  my  rashness 

Verse  14  is  a  decided  notabile. — Save  me,  0  God,  from 
the  burden  of  internal  remorse,  and  also  of  disgrace  from 
without.  Either  is  enough  to  overwhelm  one.  Let  me 
prize  knowledge,  and  more  especially  the  knowledge  of 
Christ  and  Him  crucified.  Let  me  both  hunger  and 
thirst  after  this  ;  and  also  let  me  hearken  diligently. 
Let  me  not  be  betrayed  into  a  hasty  judgment  by  ex 
parte  representations.  Chasten  the  impatience  and  im- 
petuosity of  my  mental  processes There  is  here  a  sanc- 
tion given  for  the  use  of  the  lot,  with  an  argument  in  its 
favour.  Let  me  be  most  careful  of  controversy  with 
relatives  or  very  intimate  friends,  as  a  quarrel  with  them 
is  the  most  deadly  and  irrecoverable  of  all.     Again  we 


212  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        proverbs  xix. 

read  of  that  highly  important  and  therefore  frequently 
repeated  lesson — the  right  government  of  the  tongue. — 
Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  he  far  more  observ^ant  of  the  love 
and  respect  which  I  owe  to  her  whom  I  should  regard  as 
a  gift  and  favour  from  on  high.  Let  me  be  more  alive 
to  the  gratitude  and  returns  which  I  owe  to  them  who 
bear  a  friendship  to  me  ;  and  most  of  all  let  the  love  of 
Christ  constrain  me  to  love  Him  back  again. 

Proverbs  xix.  1-14. — We  have  here  the  superior  worth 
of  virtuous  poverty,  and  the  excellence  of  knowledge. 
Let  me  feel  the  positive  sinfulness  of  haste — one  of  my 
great  constitutional  infirmities.  To  fret  at  the  annoyance 
of  untoward  circumstances  or  events,  is  in  fact  to  fret 
against  Providence  and  against  the  Lord.  Teach  me 
patience,  0  God.  May  it  have  its  perfect  work  —  Verses 
5  and  9  are  nearly  identical ;  but  to  repeat  the  same 
things  as  repeated  in  Scripture  should  not  be  grievous. 
How  I  like  the  aphorisms  that  tell  of  the  inherent  value 
of  the  mental  and  the  spiritual — as  of  the  health  and 
goodness  for  the  soul  that  lie  in  wisdom  and  understand- 
ing! With  all  the  preference  here  expressed  for  virtuous 
poverty — the  seemliness  of  rank,  and  the  violence  done 
by  the  upstart  rule  of  the  lower  over  the  higher,  are  not 

overlooked That  is  a  noble  lesson  of  forbearance  and 

self-command  which  is  given  in  verse  1 1 !  The  fretting, 
corrosive,  and  perpetual  annoyance  of  domestic  peevish- 
ness is  graphically  rendered  in  verse  13.  The  influence 
of  a  king,  whether  to  elevate  or  depress,  is  characteristi- 
cally set  forth  by  our  inspired  monarch Verse  14  is  a 

notabile. 

15-29. — The  testimony  against  sloth  is  often  repeated 


PROVERBS  XX.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  213 

in  these  proverbs.  In  verse  16  we  liave  again  the  pre- 
cious doctrine  of  the  reflex  influence  which  the  outward 
history,  whether  of  obedience  or  wickedness,  has  upon  the 
inward  state.  Its  first  clause  is  a  notabile,  and  would 
make  an  admirable  text  for  a  sermon. — My  God,  giA^e  me 
wisely,  and  with  a  deep  and  duteous  sense  of  obligation, 
both  to  devise  aright  and  to  do  aright  for  the  poor  —  The 
use  of  the  rod  is  again  inculcated,  but  not-  in  anger — 
against  which,  too,  there  is  delivered  a  sentence  of  con- 
demnation   Is  there  not  a  testimony  for  a  future  state 

in  verse  20  ? . . .  Verse  21  is  a  most  illustrious  notabile  ;  and 
with  full  confidence  in  the  Lord,  let  me  henceforth  give 
up — not  the  deliberations  of  wise  forethought,  but  all  those 
vain  and  vexatious  cogitations  which  prey  upon  the  heart 
or  engross  it  unprofitably.  If  we  desire  to  do  good,  but 
are  poor,  the  will  will  be  taken  for  the  deed ;  it  will  be 
sustained  as  kindness,  and  far  better  than  the  deceitful 
promises  of  the  wealthy.  Religion  may  begin  with  fear, 
but  will  end  in  the  sweets  and  satisfactions  of  a  spon- 
taneous and  living  principle  of  righteousness.  We  must 
smite  the  scomer ;  but  it  is  enough  to  reprove  the  man 

of  understanding Verse  26  I  should  make  a  notabile. 

It  were  an  admirable  text  for  a  sermon  to  young  men 
entering  upon  life,  and  still  at  the  expense  of  their  parents. 
It  is  a  great  enormity  either  to  waste  the  property  of 
their  father  when  he  is  alive,  or  after  they  have  succeeded, 
to  expel  the  widowed  mother  from  the  premises.  ^Ye  are 
again  told,  in  verse  29,  that  nothing  short  of  inflictions 
and  stripes  will  do  for  certain  ofienders,  to  reclaim  them. 
Admonition  may  suffice  for  others. 

Proverbs  xx.  1-9. — Another  testimony  against  drunk- 


214  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  proverbs  xx. 

enness — the  deceitfulness  of  tlie  habit,  and  the  violence 
to  which  it  transports  its  votaries  —  Well  could  Solomon 
sj^eak  from  his  own  exj^erience  to  the  formidableness  and 
the  power  of  monarchs.  The  wisdom  of  peaceableness — 
the  follj  of  meddling  with  contentiousness — fonn  among 
the  most  strenuous  of  his  lessons ;  and  also  the  evil  of 
sloth.  He  proves  in  verse  5  his  sagacious  observation  of 
human  life;  and  the  diplomatic  skill  that  is  here  so  well 
described  we  have  no  doubt  he  was  master  of  himself 
Many  are  they  who  feign  and  profess  goodness  ;  but  how 
few  there  be  who  faithfully  practise  it  in  deed  and  in 
truth  ? . . .  The  first  clause  of  verse  7  is  a  moral  truism,  of 
which  there  are  many  examples  in  this  Book  ;  but  let  us 
not  therefore  pronounce  them  to  be  useless.  The  very 
attention  drawn  to  a  virtue  or  a  vice,  though  by  only  the 
utterance  of  its  name,  presents  an  object  of  moral  contem- 
plation to  the  mind,  during  which  the  moral  feelings 
might  be  rightly  and  healthfully  exercised.  An  identical 
proposition,  therefore,  as  "  that  a  just  man  walketh  in  his 
integrity,''  though  but  the  repetition  of  a  name,  might  of 

itself  work  beneficially   on  the  reader This   passage 

closes  with  an  emphatic  deliverance  on  the  sinfulness  of 
human  nature. 

10-19. — Then  follow  the  denunciations  of  the  inspired 
teacher  against  dishonesty,  and  idleness,  and  suretiship, 
and  deceit,  and  mischievous  gossiping — and  these  inter- 
mingled with  wise  reflections  and  authoritative  sayings  on 
other  topics.  A  moral  character  may  be  assigned  to  the 
doings  even  of  very  young  children.  The  ingredient  of  the 
morally  good  or  evil  veiy  soon  appears  in  them.  We  can- 
not too  early  watch  the  symptoms  of  character,  nor  too  ear- 
nestly labour  and  pray  for  the  rectification  of  the  juvenile 


PROVERBS  XX.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  215 

mind. — Let  me  feel  the  force  of  Thy  creative  intelligence, 
in  that  Thou  hast  given  perception  and  the  organs  of  it 
to  man.  Let  me  regard  Thee  as  a  Spirit,  and  worship 
Thee,  accordingly,  in  spirit  and  in  truth Solomon  dis- 
covers his  shrewd  discernment  of  man  in  verse  14.  How 
mortifying  that  such  falsehood  and  selfishness  as  are  here 
pointed  out,  should  be  so  general !  The  superiority  of  wis- 
dom to  wealth,  and  the  benefits  of  counsel  and  good  ad- 
vice, are  among  the  aphorisms  of  this  passage. 

20-30. — My  God,  remember  not  against  me  the  sins  of 
my  youth,  in  the  catalogue  of  which  there  stands  unduti- 
fulness  to  parents.  Let  me  forbear  retaliation,  and  forget 
not  to  whom  it  is  that  vengeance  belongeth.  I  would 
wait  upon  God  when  under  the  pressure  whether  of  in- 
juries or  annoyances  —  Verse  23  is  nearly  a  repetition 
of  verse  10,  line  upon  line — even  in  behalf  of  but  one 
lesson ....  Verse  24  is  a  notabile,  and  a  highly  important 
one.  Man  can  no  more  comprehend  the  whole  meaning 
of  his  OTVTi  history,  than  he  can  comprehend  the  whole 
mind  of  that  God  who  is  the  Sovereign  Lord  and  Ordainer 
of  all  things.  Our  veiy  goings  are  of  the  Lord,  and  make 
up  a  way  which,  as  being  part  of  this  infinite  scheme,  is 
beyond  our  comprehension. — Make  my  conscience  both 
vigilant  and  tender,  0  God,  and  fearful  of  every  delusion. 
...  To  bring  the  wheel  over  the  wicked  is  to  crush  them 

and  their  machinations This  is  a  fine  thing  which,  in 

verse  27,  is  said  of  conscience  or  consciousness — the  light 
of  the  Lord  within  reflecting  the  light  of  his  outward  reve- 
lation. In  order  to  salvation,  the  spirit  must  deal  with  the 
subjective  mind,  and  illuminate  the  ruling  faculty  there, 
as  well  as  set  the  objective  word  before  us,  which  is  of 
His  own  inspiration.     A  more  vivid  conscience  will  give  us 


216  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        proverbs  xxi. 

a  livelier  sense  of  Grod's  law ;  a  more  discerning  conscious- 
ness, reaching  to  all  tlie  thoughts  and  tendencies  of  the 
inner  man,  will  give  us  a  more  convincing  view  of  our  sad 
and  manifold  deficiencies  from  that  law.  Eveiything  is 
comely  in  its  season — the  strength  of  youth,  the  gray 

hairs  of  age It  argues  the  severity  of  a  stroke  when  it 

leaves  a  blue  colour  behind.  Solomon  is  here  arguing  for 
the  system  he  so  much  advocates  of  corporal  discipline — 
for  the  salutary  effect  of  outwai'd  chastisements  on  the 
inward  dispositions. 

Proverbs  xxi.  1-9. — My  God,  turn  the  hearts  of  all 
who  have  the  power  to  annoy  me — so  that  I  may  be  at 
peace  with  them,  and  receive  justice  at  their  hands.  What 
a  comfort  we  have  here,  when  placed  under  an  un- 
righteous government ! — Lord,  impress  me  both  with  the 
danger  and  the  vanity  of  all  self-delusion,  for  He  that 

judgeth  me  is  the  Lord This  second  verse  is  a  notabile. 

. .  ."To  do  justice''  is  like  what  the  Bible  says  elsewhere  of 

mercy — more  acceptable  than  sacrifice Ploughing,  like 

sowing,  is  a  preparatory  work  for  some  produce  that  is  de- 
sired after  ;  and  that  of  the  wicked  here  is  for  the  over- 
throw of  those  whom  they  would  oppress  and  trample  on. 
Diligence  is  contrasted  with  sloth  in  the  usual  style  of 
reflection  ;  and  so  also  is  the  misery  of  ill-gotten  wealth, 
which  will,  like  the  robbery  of  the  wicked,  destroy  its 
owners.  The  way  of  nature  is  evil ;  but  as  to  those  who 
are  purified  by  faith,  by  their  works  or  fruits  which  are 
good,  we  shall  know  them.  Solomon  pens  some  weighty 
sentences  against  female  termagants — the  j^lague  and  an- 
noyance of  whom  seem  strongly  to  have  impressed  him. 

10-19. — The  claims  of  friendship  arc  overborne  by  the 


PROVERBS  XXI.        DAILY  SCRIPTUEE  READLNGS.  217 

strength  of  tliat  evil  desire  on  the  part  of  the  wicked, 
which  is  bent  on  the  objects  of  their  own  selfishness.  Note 
the  resemblance  between  verse  11  and  ch.  xix.  25. — The 
fear  of  punishment  may  constrain  attention  ;  and  then  at- 
tention opens  an  ingress  for  the  lessons  of  wisdom.  The 
righteous  man  frets  not  at  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked, 
whom  God  will  surely  and  speedily  overthrow. — Make  me 
alive,  0  God,  to  the  distresses  of  my  fellow-men.  Solomon 
was  a  sagacious  observer  of  human  life ;  and  to  this  we 
owe  many  such  reflections  as  occur  in  verse  14.  Tliere 
is  a  future  destruction  to  the  wicked,  but  a  present  joy  in 

acting  righteously Is  not  "  the  congregation  of  the 

dead''  an  expression  for  the  assemblage  of  the  condemn- 
ed, when  in  their  second  death  ?  and  is  there  not  some- 
thing here  like  the  recognition  of  a  future  state  ? — though 
it   be   the   temporal   consequences   of  dissipation  which 

are  pointed  at  in  verse  17 For  verse  18,  see  ch.  xi.  8. 

The  peace  and  blessing  of  God  on  a  community  are  often 
hinged  upon  the  excision  of  its  most  corrupt  and  unworthy 
members. 

20-31. — The  difference  between  wisdom  and  folly,  be- 
tween diligence  and  sloth,  as  to  the  respective  influences 
even  on  this  world's  prosperity,  is  again  presented  to  us. 
Moral  conduct  obtains  a  moral  reward. — He  that  follow- 
eth  after  righteousness  shall  find  righteousness. — Let  me 
seek  aright,  0  Lord,  first  the  righteousness  of  Clirist,  in 
whom  righteousness  and  mercy  meet  together — then  un- 
der Him  my  own  personal  sanctification,  in  which  I  shall 
obtain  larger  accessions  of  worth  and  holiness — with  all 
the  life,  and  peace,  and  honour,  which  are  attendant  on 

real  goodness He  again  reiterates  the  superiority  of 

wisdom  to  strength,  as  also  the  blessedness  of  that  most 

VOL.  Ill,  K 


218  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.      proverbs  xxii. 


wholesome  regimen  by  which,  we  keep  the  tongue  under 
a  right  and  well-principled  discipline.  Experience  might 
tell  the  eifect  of  a  wise  and  well-guarded  silence  in  keep- 
ing us  out  of  trouble. — Let  mj  words  henceforth  be  wisely 
and  well  ordered.  And  obseiwe  the  disgrace  it  bring-s 
upon  us,  the  stigma  of  an  evil  name.  If  we  deal  in  proud 
wrath,  effusing  it  on  every  occasion,  and  on  all  around,  it 
will  bring  on  the  re-action  of  an  indignant  neighbourhood, 

and  fasten  an  ignominious  brand  upon  us Observe  in 

verse  24,  the  use  of  a  moral  truism,  when  the  mere  presen- 
tation of  certain  moral  characteristics,  be  they  good  or  evil, 
has  the  effect  of  callinof  forth  the  ri^^ht  resi3ondent  feelinc^s 
on  the  part  of  the  reader.  The  righteous  have  the  blessed- 
ness of  being  givers — the  slothful  bring  themselves  to  the 
necessity  of  being  receivers.  It  is  a  mighty  aggravation 
of  the  guilt  of  any  religious  sendee,  when  done  for  a  salvo 

or  encouragement  to  some  design  of  future  wickedness 

In  verse  28,  to  "  speak  constantly''  is  perhaps  to  speak 
consistently.  What  the  upright  depones  to  will  stand. — 
0  for  the  abasement  of  all  human  wisdom  and  strength 
— that  God  may  be  altogether  trusted  both  for  counsel 
and  safety. 

Proverbs  xxii.  1-12.— Let  me  seek  the  applause  and 
affection  of  men  more  as  instnmients  of  good  to  others 

than  of  my  own  selfish  gratification Verse  2  is  a  nota- 

bile.— Give  me  to  honour  all  men,  for  all  are  Thy  crea- 
tures. Let  me  be  circumspect  in  all  my  ways,  and  prospec- 
tive also.  Give  me  humility  and  godliness — that  I  may 
realize  thereby  the  promise  even  of  the  life  that  now  is. 
. . .  Verse  6  is  an  illustrious  notabile. — My  God,  forgive  my 
negligence  of  the  souls  of  my  children.     May  they  all  be 


PROVERBS  XXII.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  219 

tauglit  of  Tliee,  0  Lord.  Cause  Thy  grace  to  rest  on  my 
gTaiidson,  now  nine  years  of  age ;  and  turn  both  my  own 
licait  and  the  hearts  of  his  parents  more  and  more  towards 

him The  rod  of  a  wicked  man's  anger  shall  at  length 

become  powerless.  Pureness  of  heart  leads  to  grace  on 
the  lips.  The  fountain  within  has  an  outgoing  ;  and 
altogether  the  man  who  is,  and  does  as  he  ought,  is  at 
one  and  the  same  time  acceptable  to  God,  and  approved 
of  men.  (Romans  xiv.  18.) . . .  For  verse  12,  see  ch.  ii.  7,  8. 
— God  presences  the  Church,  and  keeps  up  the  knowledge 
of  Himself  in  the  world  against  all  its  enemies  and  per- 
secutors. 

13-29. — How  frequently  do  the  slothful  conjure  up  pre- 
texts and  apologies  for  their  indolent  procrastination  ! 
He  here  warns  against  licentiousness. — Give  me  not  up,  0 
Lord,  in  judgment  to  its  fascinations ....  To  "  warn  against 
the  oppression  of  the  poor"  has  nothing  peculiar  in  it ;  but 
there  is  in  the  warning  against  giving  to  the  rich.     The 

use  of  the  rod  is  again  re-asserted The  effect  of  the 

knowledge  of  things  sacred,  is  confidence  in  God.  Ac- 
quaint thyself  v/ith  thy  Maker  and  be  at  peace.  And 
what  I  trust  in  for  myself,  I  will  make  known  in  its  cer- 
tainty and  truth  to  others.  I  have  believed,  and  there- 
fore have  I  spoken.  Avoid  companionship  with  an  angiy 
man,  and  not  so  much  for  your  personal  as  your  moral 
safety.  Avoid  suretiship — avoid  encroachment  on  a  neigh- 
bour's property  and  rights — while,  at  the  same  time,  so  far 
from  having  enjoined  on  us  indifference  to  property,  and 
the  increase  of  it  for  ourselves,  we  are  enjoined  to  be  dili- 
gent— and  diligent  in  our  business  too,  by  prosperity  in 
which,  we  shall  rise  to  a  higher  grade  than  before  in  society. 
Tliis  is  not  always  unlawful. 


220  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.      proverbs  xxiii. 

Proverbs  xxiii.  1-14. — The  direction  of  verses  1st  and 
2d  and  8d  I  stand  pre-eminentlj  in  need  of.  The  care  of 
his  regimen  as  to  eating  was  the  scrupulons  concern  of  Jona- 
than Edwards.  Let  it  be  mine  also. — ^^Wean  me  more  and 
more,  0  God,  from  a  desire  for  wealth,  and  from  a  depend- 
ence on  mj  own  wisdom.  Let  me  not  set  my  heart  upon 
deceitful  riches,  but  upon  the  living  God,  who  giveth  me 
all  things  richly  to  enjoy.  I  pray  for  the  same  grace  in 
behalf  of  one  who  I  fear  is  in  danger,  from  this  idolatrous 
affection.  The  profession  without  the  substance  of  hospi- 
tality, so  common  in  modem  times,  is  a  most  hollow  and 
unsatisfactory  affair.  Let  me  decline  all  share  in  this, 
whether  as  a  giver  or  a  receiver.  But  let  me  repair  my  de- 
ficiencies in  the  virtue  itself,  and  be  really  kind  to  all  under 
my  roof — not  ginidging  and  not  impatient  at  the  intrusions 
or  introductions  of  strangers.  They  may  be  angels  un- 
aware ;  and  at  all  events,  their  coming  is  of  the  Lord 

I  am  too  much  given  to  argue  and  vindicate  in  the  hear- 
ing of  those  who  are  either  incapable  or  uncareful  of 
appreciating  the  case.  Let  me  restrain  my  appetite  for 
the  s;)anpathy  of  all  such  ;  and  know  when  to  be  silent  as 
well  as  when  to  speak.     There  is  a  manifest  contempt  for 

what  is  said  that  should  lay  instant  arrest  upon  one 

For  verse  10,  see  ch.  xxii.  28,  where  the  possessoiy  right 
is  recognised.  Here,  again,  the  claim  of  humanity  is  super- 
added to  that  of  justice ;  and  with  an  awful  reference  to 
Him  who  is  the  friend  and  avenger  of  the  defenceless. — 
Then  there  follows  an  earnest  persuasive  to  the  acquire- 
ment of  knowledge  for  its  own  sake,  Avith  the  superaddition 
of  correction  when  necessary  for  those  in  childliood. 

15-32. — Let  me  be  wise  in  heart,  and  righteous  in 
speech ;  and  above  all  may  I  know  what  it  is  to  be  in 


PROVERBS  xxiii.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  221 

the  fear  of  God  all  the  day  long.  Put  this,  0  God,  into 
my  heart  that  I  may  not  depart  from  Thee.  And  let  me 
fret  not  because  of  the  triumph  of  the  wicked.  Let  me 
think  of  the  speedy  end  of  all  things.  Let  me  not  be 
satisfied  with  an  avoidance  of  the  excesses  here  spoken 
of  Let  me  be  temperate  in  all  things. — My  God,  forgive 
the  impatience  of  other  days,  with  my  parents  who  gave 
me  birth.  Give  up  everything  for  truth,  and  let  no  bri- 
bery of  any  sort  induce  me  to  surrender  it ... .  Verse  26  is 
a  notabile — whether  regarded  as  the  claim  of  an  earthly 
father  upon  his  children,  or  of  God  upon  His  creatures — 
which  no  sinful  and  no  earthly  affection  should  dispossess. 
. . .  Verses  31  and  32  form  a  notabile.  They  unfold  the 
gradual  process  and  increasing  power  of  temptation,  lead- 
ing onward  from  one  sin  and  from  one  enormity  to  another, 
till  brutalized  and  stupid,  the  conscience  becomes  hard 
and  torpid,  and  one  fit  of  vicious  indulgence  is  after  an  in- 
tei-val  of  stupor  followed  up  by  a  second  and  a  third, 
till  the  ever-recuiTing  tyranny  of  passion  lords  it  over  the. 
drunkard  and  debauchee. 

33-35. — Drunkenness  leads  to  impurity;  and  so  also 
does  fulness  of  bread.  Our  Saviour  warns  against  sur- 
feiting as  well  as  intoxication.  It  were  well  to  have 
a  high  standard  of  abstemiousness  in  respect  to  both. 
Whether  there  should  be  seasons  of  fasting  or  not,  there 
should  be  a  general  habit  of  temperance ;  and  the  com- 
mand of  one  appetite  strengthens  for  a  like  masteiy  over 

the  others.     I  pray  for  self-government,  0  Lord The 

drunk  man  is  in  two  particulars  like  one  on  the  top 
of  a  mast.  There  is  a  swimming  and  agitation  which 
bear  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  rolling  of  a  vessel,  and 
there  is  real  danger  in  the  midst  of  insensibility.     He  is 


222  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.      proyerbs  xxiv. 

tossed  to  and  fro  as  if  amid  tlie  waves  of  tlie  sea  ;  and 
yet  is  not  awake  to  the  hazards  of  his  condition.  Verse 
35  may  describe  a  drunkard  under  punishment,  and  so 
thoroughly  besotted  that  he  had  no  sense  of  the  shame, 
and  no  feeling  of  the  inflictions  which  were  laid  upon 
him.  After  the  fit  of  intoxication  is  over,  the  desire 
returns — the  habit  gets  more  and  more  inveterate,  the 
temptation  ever  and  anon  recurs ;  and  so  often  as  it  does, 
he  seeks  to  the  indulgence  as  passionately  as  ever. 

Proverbs  xxiv.  1-12. — Let  us  neither  envy  the  pro- 
sperity nor  desire  the  fellowship  of  the  wicked.  Know- 
ledge is  power,  as  we  may  gather  from  its  achievements 
in  this  passage.  In  the  multitude  of  counsellors,  if  they 
be  men  of  real  wisdom,  there  is  safety ;  but  a  popular 
assembly  is  not  the  best  theatre  on  which  to  mature  or 
form  the  best  devices  for  the  good  whether  of  a  church 

or  a  nation The  gate  of  the  city  was  the  place  of 

j^oncourse  for  judgment  and  deliberation  ;  and  where  the 
admittance  is  indiscriminate,  many  are  the  fools  who 
should  have  no  place,  nor  can  speak  to  any  purpose,  there. 
He  that  deviseth  evil,  however  artfully  he  may  disguise 
it,  and  perhaps  take  no  ostensible  part  in  its  doings,  shall 
be  called  a  mischievous  person — shall  have  the  brand  of 
w^hat  he  really  is,  fastened  upon  him. — My  God,  give  me 
the  control  of  my  thoughts ;  how  grievously  I  sin  in 
regard  to  these  !  Let  every  ^^Tong  and  hurtful  and  un- 
charitable imagination  be  resolutely  put  forth;  and  let 
me  keep  my  heart  with  all  diligence — and  how  easily 
I  am  cast  down,  even  by  the  apprehensions  of  evil; 
strengthen  me,  0  God,  against  its  realities.  Keep  the  evil 
from  me,  0  Lord,  if  it  be  Thy  blessed  will ;  but  if  not,  keep 


PROVERBS  XXIV.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  223 

me  from  tlie  evil  by  perfecting  Tliy  strengtli  in  my  weak- 
ness when  under  temptation,  by  bearing  up  my  courage 
and  confidence  when  under  adversity.  This  verse  10  is  a 
notabile,  and  so  also  pre-eminently  are  verses  11  and  12. 
Plow  impressively  do  they  rebuke  and  should  they  alarm 
the  spiritual  cowardice  of  him  who  shrinks  from  the  faith- 
ful warning  that  might  convert  and  save  souls  ! 

13-22, — Wisdom  is  to  be  cultivated  because  of  its 
pleasantness,  even  as  honey  is  eaten  because  of  its  sweet- 
ness. There  is  a  very  present  reward,  as  well  as  a  future 
hojDe  attendant  on  righteousness.  The  wicked  shall  not 
prevail  against  the  just. — Recover  me,  0  God,  from  my 
manifold  falls.     Make  good  my  rising  again,  and  restore 

my  backslidings. — Verse  1 6  is  a  notabile The  enemies 

of  Israel,  though  instruments  in  God's  hand  for  the  pun- 
ishment of  His  people,  were  themselves  punished  because 
they  rejoiced  in  the  do\A^ifall  which  they  had  effected. 
This  inhuman  joy  will  be  disappointed  in  its  o\\ti  object 
— for  God  will  because  of  it  turn  Him  in  mercy  to  the 

unhappy  victims  of  their  triumph Verse  19  is  nearly  a 

repetition  of  verse  1  ;  but  the  reason  of  the  injunction  is 
given  in  verse  20 — the  temporaiy  and  perishable  nature 

of  the  wicked's  prosperity Verse  21  is  a  clear  notabile. 

It  is  not  change  simply  that  is  here  denounced,  but  ad- 
dictedness  to  change — the  being  given  to  change  for 
change's  sake,  or  from  the  mere  love  and  habit  of  innova- 
tion. Ruin  will  come  both  upon  such  and  those  who  join 
with  them. 

July,  1846. 

23-34. — The  first  four  verses  of  this  passage  seem  in- 
tended forjudges . . .  .Verse  27  is  highly  applicable  to  those 
who  come  into  the  possession  of  an  estate,  and  are  carried 


224  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        proverbs  xxv. 

away  by  the  vanity  of  living  in  a  baronial  bouse,  greatly 
it  may  be  beyond  its  value.  First,  see  to  the  productive- 
ness of  your  acres,  and  tben  regulate  your  expenditure 
accordingly.  Put  your  ground  into  a  right  condition ;  and 
afterwards  build  a  house  corresponding  to  the  revenue 

which  it  yields It  is  pleasant  to  observe  the  outgoing 

of  the  earlier  morality  towards  the  later  and  more  ad- 
vanced— of  that  in  the  Old  towards  that  in  the  New 
Testament. — We  have  here,  in  verse  29,  a  prohibition 
laid  on  retaliation,  or  the  returning  of  evil  for  evil.  Tlien 
there  occurs  a  picturesque  description  of  the  state  in 
which  he  beheld  the  premises  of  the  slothful  man,  and 
founded  upon  it  a  dissuasive  from  the  habit  against  which 
so  many  of  these  proverbs  are  directed — the  habit  of 
improvident  laziness.  It  is  followed  up  by  a  decided 
Scripture  notabile,  in  verse  33  ;  and  from  which  as  from 
a  text  the  preacher  may  urge  his  hearers  against  the  evils 
of  procrastination,  lest  they  should  be  landed  in  some- 
thing far  more  grievous  than  poverty — a  ruined  because 
neglected  eternity. 

Proveebs  xxv.  1-14. — It  is  interesting  to  mark  the  step 
here  told  us  in  the  extension  of  Scripture.  The  last 
chapters  being  added  by  Hezekiah,  implies  that  the  pre- 
ceding ones  were  arranged  pre\4ously,  and  may  have  been 
left  in  their  present  state  by  Solomon  himself  The  ap- 
pendix subjoined  by  the  men  of  Hezekiah  was  also  the 
composition  of  Solomon,  though  the  compilation  of  a  later 
period God's  glory  is  that  He  is  above  the  comprehen- 
sion of  His  creatures  ;  and  He  needs  not  to  search  for  any- 
thing, as  He  knows  all  things  intuitively.  A  king's  glory 
is  to  search  all  that  he  requires  to  know  for  the  guidance 


PROVERBS  XXV.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  225 

and  policy  of  liis  government ;  while  even  he  participates 
in  the  glory  of  being  himself  beyond  the  ken  of  those 

who  are  beneath  him The  silver  becomes  fit  for  being 

made  into  vessels  of  honour  by  having  the  dross  removed 
from  it.  The  people  surrounding  the  king  become  fit  for 
his  dignitaries  and  office-bearers  by  the  wicked  being  put 
out  from  his  presence ....  The  analogy  is  worthy  of  re- 
mark between  verses  6  and  7  and  Luke  xiv.  9.  A  hasty 
intermeddling  with  quarrels  is  here  condemned,  as  in  other 
places,  with  great  wisdom  and  effect  —  Verse  1 1  is  a  most 
precious  and  beautiful  notabile  ;  and  so  is  verse  12 — the 

cadence  of  which  has  often  charmed  me The  harvest 

takes  place  in  the  southern  countries  in  very  hot  weather 
— when  liquids  cooled  by  snow  from  the  mountains,  as 
Lebanon,  must  be  veiy  refreshing ....  To  "  boast  of  a  false 
gift ''  is  either  of  receiving  or  giving — here  probably  the 
latter. 

15-28. — "We  have  here  the  moral  power  of  meekness 
and  forbearance — the  evil  of  excessive  indulgence — the 
hazard  of  too  frequent  an  intinision  upon  one's  neighbours 
— the  sore  infliction  that  falsehood  might  make  upon  peace 
and  honour — the  suffering  which  is  incurred  by  confidence 
in  the  false  and  unfaithful — and  the  unseasonableness  of 
mirth  in  the  presence  of  the  afflicted  —  Verses  21,  22, 
form  a  notalnle,  and  all  the  more  prominent  from  the 
quotation  of  it  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans.  Kindness  to 
an  enemy  will  either  melt  and  subdue  him,  or  else  it  will 
aggravate  his  final  retribution. — Then  we  have  the  moral 
power  of  anger,  whether  as  frowning  down  injury,  or  as 
filling  a  house  with  discomfort  and  misery For  a  right- 
eous man  to  fall  down  in  disgrace  or  cowardice  before 
the  wicked,  or  to  be  trampled  upon  by  their  tyrannical 

K  2 


226  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,      proverbs  xxvi. 

power,  is  either  a  sad  corruption  or  a  sad  tribulation  in  a 

commonwealtli Compare  verse  27  witli  verse  16. — Save 

me  from  the  contemptible  weakness  of  seeking  after  praise 
— for  this  is  most  inglorious,  and  the  excess  of  it,  just  like 
honey,  is  at  length  nauseous.  Give  me  a  command  over 
self — else  I  am  indeed  very  defenceless  ;  and  lay  open  my 
subjective  nature  to  all  the  hazards  of  the  objectiA^e  world 
around  me Verse  28  is  a  notabile. 

Proverbs  xxvi.  1-12. — We  have  here  the  want  of  keep- 
ing between  folly  on  the  one  hand,  and  either  respect  or 
fidelity  or  effectiveness,  whether  in  doing  or  saying,  upon 
the  other.  He  stands  as  much  in  need  of  physical  con- 
straint and  correction  as  do  the  inferior  animals Verses 

4  and  5  receive  illustration  from  the  following  dialogue, 
said  to  have  taken  place  between  Lord  Rochester  and 
Bishop  Burnet : — 

L. — '*  My  Lord  Bishop,  yours  to  my  knees." 

B. — "My  Lord  Rochester,  yours  to  the  ground." 

L. — "  And  yours,  again,  my  Lord  Bishop,  to  the  centre  of  the  earth." 

B. — "And  yours,  my  Lord  Rochester,  to  the  antipodes." 

L. — "  And  yours  to  the  bottom  of  hell." 

B. — "  There,  I  leave  you,  my  Lord." 

Scripture  tells  us  to  "  answer  a  fool  according  to  his 
folly,  lest  he  should  be  wise  in  his  own  conceit ;''  but  it 
also  tells  us  to  "  answer  not  a  fool  according  to  his  folly, 
lest  we  be  like  unto  him.''  The  "  folly''  of  this  Book  im- 
plies a  moral  as  well  as  intellectual  deficiency — wicked- 
ness as  well  as  senselessness ;  and  the  "  fool "  is  distin- 
guished from  the  "  transgressor  "  of  verse  10,  as  the  habit 

or  character  is  from  the  acts Verse  11  is  referred  to  in 

2  Pet.  ii.  22.     And  yet  with  all  this  disparagement  and 


PROVERBS  xxvii.    DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  227 

denunciation  of  folly,  is  the  fool  regarded  as  a  more  liope- 
ful  person  than  the  man  who  is  wise  in  his  own  conceit, 
who  receives  by  this  deliverance  a  fell  rebuke  and  condem- 
nation.— Lord,  cast  down  my  lofty  imagination,  and  teach 
me  to  think  of  myself  soberly. 

13-28. — Our  moralist  now  proceeds  to  other  lessons — 
as,  first,  against  slothfulness — the  frequent  theme  of  his 
animadvei*sions.  And  here  he  remarks  how  readily  it  can 
devise  excuses  for  indulgence — how  fastened  to  its  place  of 
repose,  even  as  a  door  is  to  its  hinges — how  adverse  even 
to  the  smallest  and  most  trifling  exertions — and  yet 
withal  how  conceited  and  confident.  It  must  cleave,  and 
with  great  tenacity,  to  something  as  a  plea  and  argument 
for  self-justification. — Then  comes  a  wise  reflection  against 
the  intermeddler  with  other  men's  quarrels. — Then  against 
the  deceiver,  as  both  mischievous  and  most  hateful. — Then 
against  the  calumniator.  One  should  be  careful  even  of 
the  lighter  gossipry — for  there  is  no  calculating  on  the 
evil  it  might  do  to  its  victims,  though  done  by  us  perhaps 
in  sport.  The  silver  dross  which  covers  the  potsherd  may 
form  a  sort  of  ornamental  dress  to  it — even  as  the  flattery 
of  an  ardent  profession  may  disguise  the  worthlessness 
of  the  inner  soul.  But  this  deceitfulness  will  not  avail 
always.  It  will  at  length  be  laid  open  to  public  indigna- 
tion.    And  so,  too,  the  artful  will  meet  with  punishment, 

by  falling  into  their  own  snares In  verse  28,  we  are  told 

of  the  hatred  which  one  feels  to  those  whom  he  has 
injured.  The  hatred  and  the  injury  act  and  react  on 
each  other. 

Proverbs  xxvii.  1-10. — Yerse  1  referred  to  in  James 
iv.  13,  &c. — My  God,  save  me  from  the  sinful  love  of 


228  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,    proverbs  xxvii. 

praise.  Better  tliat  otliers  should  praise  me  than  I  my 
self;  but  better  still  that  I  should  not  seek  my  own  glory 
even  at  their  mouths,  (ch.  xxv.  27.)  Not  my  own  will  but 
God's  will — not  my  own  glory  but  God's  glory  —  A  fooFs 
wrath — unrestrained,  unprincipled  \vrath — is  heavy ;  yet 
secret,  repining,  insidious  em'y  is  more  mischievous  still. 
In  beautiful  counterpart  to  this  is  the  elegant  verse  that 
follows — one  of  the  most  pleasing  notabilia  in  Scripture — 
expanded  in  the  sixth  verse — the  "  open  rebuke  "  being 
the  ''faithful  wound,''  which  is  better  for  him  who  is 
struck  by  it  than  the  unknown  and  inoperative  affection 
even  of  a  real  friend,  and  better  far  than  the  flatteries  of 

a  disguised  enemy The  hunger  which  gives  a  relish 

and  appetency,  goes  far  to  equalize  the  enjoyment  of  the 
poor  with  that  of  the  rich — sated,  and  it  may  be  to  nausea, 
by  the  abundance  of  their  good  things.— Let  me  cherish 
home,  and  fill  up  my  time  there  with  useful  occupations. 
Let  me  love  to  abide  where  Providence  has  placed  me.  I 
have  felt  the  evils  of  throwing  myself  abroad  and  at  large. 
. . .  The  sweetness  unto  the  moral  and  mental  taste  of  such 
elements  as  friendship  and  affectionate  counsel,  is  a  lesson 
of  exceeding  preciousness.  Let  me  feel  the  obligation  of 
duty  to  my  own  friends,  and  to  the  friends  of  my  rela- 
tives ;  but  friendship  is  more  to  be  trusted  than  relation- 
ship. Trust  rather  in  the  kindness  of  an  affectionate 
neighbourhood  than  hazard  the  exposure  of  thyself  to  a 
cold,  or  selfish,  or  alienated  kindred. 

11-27. — The  moralist  turns  to  his  son,  and  begs  that 
the  result  of  his  treatment  may  be  such  as  to  vindicate  him 
against  the  reproaches  of  those  who  found  fault  with  it. 
. . .  Foresight  is  recommended  by  the  good  of  it,  and  by  the 
evil  which  issues  from  the  want  of  it.     Suretiship  is  again 


PRovERns  xxviii.    DA1L\  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  229 

condemned,  as  in  ch.  xx.  1 6 ;  and  more  especially  are 
we  warned  to  take  a  pledge  of  him  that  is  surety  for  a 
strange  woman. — Let  me  beware  of  extravagantly  or  os- 
tentatiously praising  others — an  aptitude  of  mine  rather. 
Then  we  are  told  of  the  unescapable  calamity  of  having  a 
female  virago  to  do  with — an  object  of  particular  aversion 

in  this  Book We  have  here  the  good  of  converse  in 

sharpening  the  faculties,  (verse  17,)  and  of  sympathy  in 
revealing  both  ourselves  and  others,  (verse  19.) — In  verse 
18  we  are  told  the  good  of  fidelity  in  trust  and  service. 
There  is  no  fulness  of  satisfaction  for  our  earthly  desires 

— none  but  in  God Verse  21  seems  to  tell  us  that  praise 

is  a  touch-stone.  Foolishness  may  be  made  to  depart  from 
the  heart  of  a  child,  (ch.  xxii.  15,)  but  not  of  an  incor- 
rigible fool The  chapter  concludes  Avith  the  rewards  of 

diligence,  and  of  vigilant  superintendence  of  one's  affairs, 
as  a  safeguard  against  the  uncertainty  of  riches.  The 
security  of  returns  from  land,  for  good  and  careful  hus- 
bandry, seems  to  be  contrasted  with  the  precariousness  of 
other  wealth,  and  even  of  the  monarch's  crown. 

Proverbs  xxviii.  1-12. — What  fearful  imaginations  the 
consciousness  of  giiilt  inspires  us  with  ;  but  what  a  noble 
superiority  to  all  terrors  does  a  conscious  rectitude  confer ! 
What  a  testimony  is  verse  2  against  democracy,  and  for 
monarchy,  provided  that  the  monarch  is  virtuous  !  Under 
the  former  regimen  how  often  is  the  evil  of  verse  3  real- 
ized ;  and  how  often,  also,  are  the  wicked  praised  in  op- 
position to  God's  law.  He  that  is  spiritual  judgeth  all 
things — himself  misunderstood  by  the  godless  multitude. — 
Then  follow  one  or  two  of  the  moral  truisms  often  repeated 
in  this  Book.     God  often,  even  in  this  life    transfers  the 


230  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,    proverbs  xxviii. 

wealth  gotten  by  tlie  unjust  to  those  who  are  merciful. — 
My  God,  forbid  that  my  disregard  of  Thy  precepts  should 
make  my  prayer  an  abomination.  God's  providence  often 
leads  the  man  who  plots  against  the  innocent  into  snares 
of  his  own  laying,  and  ensures  to  the  righteous  their  pos- 
sessions   There  is  a  shrewd  observation  of  life  in  verse 

11.  But  our  moralist  was  observant  of  nations  as  well  as 
of  individuals ;  and  how  true  it  is,  that  under  a  wicked 
government  the  good  sink  into  obscurity. 

13-28. — The  confession  to  which  pardon  is  granted  is 
confession  unto  God.  We  can  not  only  cover  our  sin  from 
men,  but  by  our  extenuations  and  light  thoughts  of  it, 
also  from  ourselves. — Give  me  a  constant  fear  of  God, 
that  I  may  harden  not  my  heart  —  I  pray  for  the  deliver- 
ance of  all  lands  from  cruel  tyranny ;  and  for  free  and 
righteous  government  every^vhere.  Save  me  from  the 
guilt  of  soul  murder,  lest  I  incur  the  doom  of  him  who 
offends  any  of  Christ's  little  ones ;  and  against  whom  He 
denounces  that  it  were  better  for  him  to  have  a  mill-stone 
put  around  his  neck,  and  to  be  cast  into  the  sea. — Then 
follow  some  of  the  usual  truisms  on  righteousness,  and 
diligence,  and  fidelity.  There  are  precious  texts  here 
against  hastening  to  be  rich.  "We  are  also  warned  against 
respect  of  persons,  whom  rather  we  should  rebuke,  and  so 
obtain  their  respect  afterwards Verse  24  were  an  ad- 
mirable ground  for  a  sermon  to  young  men  attending  a 
seminary,  and  away  from  home,  when  assailed  by  temp- 
tations to  extravagance  and  folly.  There  is  a  delusion  in 
their  minds,  as  if  it  were  no  great  harm,  seeing  that  what 
they  spend  is  only  at  the  cost  of  their  parents.  They  who, 
instead  of  constantly  asserting  and  contending  for  their 
own  dignity  or  right,  commit  their  cause  to  God,  live  in 


PRovKRBs  XXIX.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  231 

quietness,  and  will  inherit  prosperity.  To  walk  warily, 
instead  of  having  a  blind  confidence  in  present  impulses, 
is  the  way  to  walk  safely.  A  blessing  is  pronounced  on 
the  friends  of  the  poor ;  and  the  last  verse  of  this  chapter 
is  nearly  a  repetition  of  verse  12. 

Proverbs  xxix.  1-17. — Verse  1  is  a  notabile.  The  har- 
dening effect  of  continued  resistance  to  the  application  of 

a  moral  force  is  a  very  great  lesson In  verse  5  I  am 

inclined  to  think  that  the  snare  is  for  the  neighbour's 
feet.  One  transgression  is  a  snare  shutting  up  to  the  re- 
petition of  it. — Let  me  be  more  obser\^ant  of  the  lesson  in 
verse  9,  for  I  am  too  apt  to  contend  even  with  a  hopeless 
subject ;  and  also  of  the  lesson  in  verse  11,  for  I  am  too 
effusive,  and  not  sufficiently  retentive  of  my  feelings  and 
thoughts.     There  is  much  of  the  wise  observer  in  verse 

12 Verse  131  confess  to  be  not  very  intelligible. — 0  for 

a  government  that  will  wisely  consider  the  case  of  the 
poor.  By  joining  the  rod  with  the  reproof,  it  is  clearly 
intimated  that  the  moral  is  sometimes  the  better  enforced 
when  there  is  added  to  it  the  physical  appliance.  Let 
us  not  despair  because  the  wicked  are  preferred  to  high 
places,  and  bring  out  a  multitude  of  followers  in  their 
o^^Ti  likeness.  Iniquity  will  not  always  be  paramount ; 
but,  as  we  are  told  in  verse  16,  its  overthrow  will  take 
place  in  sight  of  the  righteous,  who  will  obtain  the  final 
triumph.  The  use  of  correction  in  education  is  a  frequent 
and  favourite  lesson  in  this  Book. 

18-27. — (See  1  Sam.  iii.)  The  seers  were  the  instruc- 
tors of  the  people  in  these  days :  where  there  is  no  such 
instruction,  or  where  the  people  are  left  to  themselves, 
they  are  sure  to  perish.    What  a  lesson  as  to  the  importance 


232  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       proverbs  xxx. 

of  a  Clirlstlan  ministry. — Verse  18  is  a  notabile There 

are  impracticable  servants,  callous  to  reasoning ;  and  it 
is  plainly  hinted  here,  that  to  have  their  obedience  some- 
thing more  stringent  and  compulsory  must  be  resorted 
to. — Save  me,  0  God,  from  all  hasty  utterances — a  be- 
setting foible.  Let  me  beware  also  of  a  fond  and  over 
delicate  treatment  of  those  who  might  be  spoiled  thereby. 
Let  me  beware  of  anger  and  pride,  and  be  of  a  genuinely 
meek  and  humble  spirit.     Let  me  recoil  from  the  wicked, 

nor  be  afraid  of  the  hostility  of  men Verse  26  is  quite 

a  notabile. — Let  me  trust  in  God  as  my  helper,  and  fear 
not  what  man  can  do  unto  me.  Let  me  count  the  favour, 
or  the  favourable  judgment  of  man,  but  a  small  matter : 
He  that  judgeth  me  is  the  Lord.  The  chapter  concludes 
with  the  mutual  repugnance  of  men  of  opposite  characters. 

Proverbs  xxx.  1-9. — There  are  various  conjectures  re- 
garding Agur,  Ithiel,  and  Ucal,  which  we  shall  not  put 
down.  There  is  deep  self-abasement  in  the  profession 
Avhich  he  makes — more  especially  as  wanting  in  wisdom, 
and  the  truest  of  all  wisdom  too — the  knowledge  of  the 

Holy. — Give  me  to  increase  in  this  knowledge,  0  Lord 

There  is  the  ascription  of  what  is  lofty  and  incomprehen- 
sible, and  all-powerful,  to  the  Divinity,  in  verse  4 ;  and  it 
is  interesting  to  mark,  in  these  older  writings,  the  em- 
bryo revelation  of  what  has  been  more  fully  known  in 

later  days Verse  5  is  a  very  precious  notabile.     The 

purity  of  God's  word  is  its  perfect  and  immaculate  free- 
dom from  every  mixture  of  the  doubtful  or  the  uncertain. 
In  God  is  light,  and  in  Him  is  no  darkness  at  all. — Let 
me  therefore  commit  myself,  with  absolute  and  unfaltering 
confidence,  to  this  unfailing  word.     Let  me  trust  in  God ; 


PROVERDs  XXX.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  233 

and  shielded  by  His  might  and  faithfuhiess,  I  am  safe. 
And  His  word  is  complete  as  well  as  pure.  Let  me  not 
superadd  any  fancies  of  my  own ;  for  if  I  give  out  these 
in  the  name  of  His  authority,  as  if  they  were  Bible  inti- 
mations or  warnings,  when  they  are  not,  I  should  thereby 

falsify  the  counsel  of  God The  passage  from  verse  7  to 

verse  9,  inclusive,  may  be  regarded  as  a  notabile.  I  would 
join  in  Agur's  prayer. — Save  me,  0  Lord,  from  the  temp- 
tation to  forfeit  my  integrity  for  place  or  pecuniary  ad- 
vantage of  any  sort.  And  0  let  me  not  trust  in  uncertain 
riches,  or  suffer  the  gifts  of  God  to  seduce  my  affections 
from  God  Himself  The  poor  man  who  steals,  and  has  at 
the  same  time  a  religious  profession,  may  be  said  to  take 
God's  name  in  vain,  by  the  discredit  which  he  brings  upon 
His  cause  in  the  world. 

10-20. — "Wrong  not  a  helpless  man,  lest  his  appeal  bring 
down  upon  you  the  displeasure  of  God.  There  are  four 
hateful  and  delinquent  classes  here  spoken  of — Forgive, 
0  Lord,  my  disrespect  and  undutifulness  to  parents. 
Cleanse  my  heart,  0  God.  I  am  not  pure  in  my  OTvai 
eyes,  but  I  seek  to  be  delivered  from  all  impurity.  Let 
me  not  be  carried  away  by  any  swelling  imaginations  of 
my  own  importance.  Correct  and  chasten  this  tendency 
of  nature,  0  God.  I  can  scarcely  accuse  myself  of  a  cruel 
or  oppressive  spirit,  yet  am  I  not  hereby  justified.     In 

many  points  I  offend The  first  clause  of  verse  15  may 

be  appended  to  verse  14,  and  represent  the  insatiableness 
of  a  thirst  for  money  and  a  thirst  for  power.  He  then 
proceeds  to  state  four  things  as  illustrations  of  this  insa  - 
tiableness.  He  then  interjects  a  denunciation  against  the 
children  who  are  contemptuous  of  those  who  gave  them 
birth.      Then  come  four  things  which  he  represents  as 


234  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.      proverbs  xxxi. 

unsearcliable.  Tlie  tliree  natural  enigmas  seem  as  if  intro- 
duced, not  as  analogous  to  tlie  last,  in  that  it  is  incompre- 
liensible,  viewed  as  a  natural  process, — but  to  set  off  the 
deep  policy  and  disguise  of  a  seducer.  Were  it  not,  how- 
ever,  for  verse  20,  all  the  four  would  have  seemed  as  if 
likened  to  each  other  in  respect  of  their  natural  myste- 
riousness. 

21-33. — Then  follows  the  mention  of  four  things  as  dis- 
quieting, and  disgusting,  and  intolerable — all  alike  in  this, 
that  they  exemplify  the  preferment  of  those  who  are  un- 
meet for  aggrandisement  and  honour.  The  second  is  that 
of  a  fool  become  rich.  Afterwards  we  read  of  four  things 
not  to  be  despised  because  of  their  seeming  insignificance 
— and  this  because  their  lack  of  strength  is  compensated 
by  the  redeeming  property  of  great  skill.  Among  these  the 
locusts  go  forth  in  marshalled  order,  though  they  have  no 
king  to  marshal  them — as  if  in  virtue  of  a  wisdom  diffused 
through  them  all.  One  scarcely  apprehends  a  moral  in 
the  next  class  of  characterized  instances,  which  are  brought 
forward  apparently  in  contrast  with  the  preceding,  having 
an  imposing  air  of  greatness.  There  is  a  dignity  of  manner 
sanctioned  by  all  these  phenomena,  if  they  may  be  so  called. 
Though  we  may  lift  ourselves  up  unwarrantably,  and  in 
foolish  conceit,  or  perhaps  with  the  e^dl  design  of  humbling 
others,  for  which  we  ought  to  be  penitent  and  ashamed, 
let  us  not  stir  up  strife  by  any  pride  or  violence  of  ours. 

Proverbs  xxxi.  1-9. — Neither  shall  we  enter  upon  the 
conjectures  about  Lemuel.  His  lessons  are  good.  In  his 
charge  against  drunkenness,  as  it  is  delivered  to  a  king, 
the  appropriate  argument  is  used  of  its  unseemliness  for 
those  in  high  station,  and  more  especially  if  in  offices  of 


PROVERBS  XXXI.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  235 

public  duty  or  trust.  Out  of  their  stores  tliey  may  give 
wine  for  medicine  to  the  diseased,  or  cordials  to  those  in 
affliction  and  want.  There  is  no  warrant  in  this  passage 
for  the  poor  taking  up  the  habit,  or  as  it  may  be  called 
the  trade  of  di-unkenness  at  their  own  hands.  It  is  an 
injunction  on  the  givers  of  this  commodity  to  others ;  and 
for  the  purpose  whether  of  health  or  consolation.  And 
King  Lemuel  is  told  not  to  be  generous  only  out  of  his 
own  personal  wealth,  but  equitable  in  the  affairs  of  his 
high  administration.  And  so  there  is  a  return  made  here 
to  pure  and  virtuous  judgment,  in  particular  between  the 
poor  and  their  oppressors — to  prevent  the  perversion  of 
which,  he  had  just  been  told  to  refrain  from  intoxication. 
. . .  The  opening  of  the  mouth  applies  both  to  advocates 
and  judges — though  it  must  have  been  chiefly  in  the  latter 
capacity  that  Lemuel  as  a  king  was  called  upon  to  act ; 
yet  is  he  told  to  plead  the  cause  of  the  dumb  and  the  poor 

and  the  needy Those  who  were  appointed  to  destruction 

may  be  those  sentenced  to  capital  punishment  in  the 
courts  below.  And  his  pleading  may  be  his  setting  forth 
the  reasons  of  his  sentence  as  is  done  in  the  charge  of 
judges. 

10-19. — The  whole  passage  down  to  the  end  of  the 
chapter  is  a  pre-eminent  notabile.  It  is  the  description 
of  a  virtuous  woman — in  the  sense  of  our  old  Scotch,  by 
which  virtue  and  thrift  are  synonymous.  It  is  a  eulogy  on 
good  housewifery,  and  a  great  deal  more — for  the  cares  of 
this  notable  manager  extended  beyond  those  of  the  mere 
household,  even  to  the  farm,  and  the  merchandise,  and 
the  home  manufactures.  Then  we  are  told  that  a  virtu- 
ous woman  may  be  found,  though  she  be  spoken  of  here 
and  elsewhere  as  a  great  rarity.     The  confidence  of  the 


236  DAILY  SCRirTURE  READINGS,      proverbs  xxxr. 

husband,  as  mentioned  in  verse  11,  does  not  respect  her 
conjugal  fidelity,  but  her  industry  and  talent  for  business, 
the  proceeds  of  which  make  him  independent  of  booty,  as 
a  marauder — a  significant  clause  which  tells  of  the  preda- 
tory habits  of  these  days.  We  have  here  the  custom  of 
late  so  prevalent  in  our  own  land,  of  home-made  cloth,  by 
the  export  of  which  it  is  probable  that  she  is  represented 
as  fetching  her  food  from  afar.  And  then  her  internal 
management  is  so  well  conducted — her  early  rising — her 
distribution  of  meals  to  all  the  members  of  her  domestic 
establishment — her  husbandry  without  doors — her  opera- 
tive processes  within.  There  is  to  me  a  poetical  charm 
and  efiect  inverse  19. — Altogether  she  is  an  illustrious 
notable. 

20-31. — But  her  noblest  characteristic  is  her  kindness 
to  the  poor — which  at  the  same  time  does  not  infringe  on 
the  comfort  or  even  the  splendour  of  her  establishment. 
With  all  her  generosity  to  the  destitute  she  retains  sub- 
stantial provision,  and  costly  dress,  as  well  as  furniture 
for  her  own  household.  It  is  a  fine  trait  in  this  descrip- 
tion— the  contribution  she  makes  to  the  respectability  of 
her  husband.  We  here  read,  too,  of  her  fabrics,  which 
she  exchangeth  with  the  merchant  for  his  wares  or  goods 
from  a  distance.  She  becomes  strong  in  credit  and  honour 
and  security,  in  consequence  of  all  her  praiseworthy  doings. 
But  nothing  can  exceed  the  beauty  wherewith  her  speech 
is  characterized : — "  In  her  tongue  is  the  law  of  kindness'' 

is  a  perfect  gem Verse  27  is  a  special  notabile,  and  we 

hear  it  repeated  with  all  the  frequency  and  familiarity  of  a 
proverb,  of  the  industrious — "  that  they  eat  not  the  bread 
of  idleness.''  Verse  28  is  also  very  precious. — "  The  chil- 
dren rising  up  and  calling  her  blessed."     But  her  crowning 


EccLEsiASTEs  I.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  237 

grace  is  her  godliness — a  virtue  not  only  compatible  with, 
but  the  fountain-head  of  all  that  can  benefit  or  embellish 
human  life.  Favour  or  the  affection  of  love  is  often  de- 
ceitful, but  godliness  is  for  honour,  as  well  as  profitable  to 
all  things. 

ECCLESIASTES. 

EccLESiASTES  L — The  Commentary  which  I  know  best 
on  Ecclesiastes  is  that  of  Bishop  Patrick,  who  perhaps 
inclines  too  much  to  methodize  it  into  a  continuous  argu- 
ment, though  it  is  evidently  not,  as  the  Book  of  Proverbs, 
a  mere  collection  of  sayings.  Its  predominant  lesson  is 
the  vanity  of  this  world  in  itself,  and  apart  from  all  that 
went  before  or  comes  after  it.  No  doubt  the  earth  abideth ; 
but  how  ephemeral  is  each  man,  and  each  generation  of 
men  upon  it.  No  doubt  there  is  recurrence  or  circulation 
in  many  things  :  when  the  sun  sets  it  is  not  for  ever ; 
when  the  wind  shifts  it  comes  back  to  its  old  direction ; 
when  the  waters  of  a  river  empty  themselves  into  the  sea 
they  do  not  abide  there  so  as  to  make  it  fuller  than  before, 
but  they  return  by  evaporation,  and  descend  to  their  old 
fountain-heads.  Man  labours,  but  not  to  his  own  satis- 
faction, for  his  eye  cannot  rest  on  aught  that  is  new. 
And  the  old  round  of  labour  and  disappointment  will 
just  be  described  by  eyery  succeeding  generation.  This 
we  may  be  sure  of  without  any  distinct  records  from  our 
ancestors  to  us,  or  from  us  to  posterity Solomon  an- 
nounces himself  as  a  diligent  observer  of  these  things. 
This  of  itself  is  a  sore  labour,  and  aggravated  by  the  dis- 
covery that  all  was  vanity  and  vexation.  There  are  de- 
formities and  defects  innumerable  which  wc  cannot  mend. 


238  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,     ecclesiastes  ii. 

Solomon  in  his  inquiries  after  truth  gave  himself  not 
only  to  know  wisdom  but  to  know  madness  and  folly — 
perhaps  by  obsers^ing  them  in  others,  or  by  making  a 
study  of  madmen  and  fools.  He  had  great  advantages 
for  the  inquiry — and  the  result  was  that  even  in  wis- 
dom and  knowledge  there  was  grief  and  sorrow,  and  so 
vexation. 

Ecclesiastes  ii.  1-14. — He  had  just  demonstrated  the 
insufficiency  of  knowledge  for  happiness — he  now  seeks 
for  it  in  pleasure,  and  with  the  same  result.  He  gave  him- 
self unto  wine  and  folly — but  with  the  view  of  experi- 
menting upon  them,  and  so  not  with  the  excess  which 
would  unfit  him  for  the  business  of  obseiwation.  His 
object  was  to  ascertain  what  was  really  best  for  man ; 
and  so  he  brought  together  all  sorts  of  luxuries,  such  as 
kings  only  could  command.  There  are  various  opinions 
respecting  the  delights  of  the  sons  of  men.  He  indulged 
in  all  sorts  of  magnificence  and  pleasure  ;  yet  not  so  as  to 
stupify  his  intelligence,  or  prcA^ent  him  from  a  wise  dis- 
cernment of  the  character  and  consequences  of  the  indul- 
gences to  which  he  gave  himself  up.  He  did  not  labour 
to  provide  all  these  things  without  making  trial  of  the 
enjoyment  that  was  in  them :  and  yet  all  was  still  vexa- 
tion and  vanity.  He  turned  him  reflexly  on  what  he  had 
gone  through,  and  could  not  in  spite  of  his  disapj^ointments 
but  acknowledge  the  superiority  of  wisdom,  which  if  it 
take  the  command  will  save  a  man  from  much  evil  into 
which  folly  here  i-uns  itself  But  then  there  is  the  equaliz- 
ing death  that  levels  all  and  absorbs  all. 

15-26. — This  last  reflection  brings  him  to  the  same  con- 
clusion of  the  world's  vanity — just  and  true  if  this  world 


ECCLK3IASTE3  III.   DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  239 

be  all.  It  led  him  to  a  despairing  and  distasteful  view  of 
life.  It  gave  additional  poignancy  to  this  sentiment  that 
the  whole  fruit  of  his  labour  here  should  quickly  pass 
under  the  control  and  o^^^lership  of  another,  who  might  as 
readily  chance  to  be  a  fool  as  a  wise  man.  It  does  give  a 
farcical  view  of  life  that  such  should  be  the  upshot  of  all 
a  man's  fatigues  and  cares  and  anxieties.  And,  therefore, 
better  that  he  should  cast  off  the  burden  of  them,  and  take 
with  a  cheerful  and  light  heart  the  enjoyments  which  are 
within  his  reach.  And  certainly  on  the  premise  of  the 
world  being  our  all,  this  were  true  wisdom.  Let  us  eat 
and  drink  for  to-morrow  we  die  ;  nay,  there  may  be  even  a 
godliness  in  such  contentment  and  freedom  from  care,  and 
thankful  enjoyment  of  things  present.  (See  Matthew  vi. 
31,  34;  1  Corinthians  iii.  2;  1  Timothy  iv.  4.) . . .  Solomon, 
in  verse  25,  seems  to  claim  the  acquiescence  of  others  in 
his  views  from  his  larger  experience  and  opportunities.  It 
is  a  gift  of  grace  from  God  to  be  made  to  use  the  world 
without  abusing.  The  sinner  is  the  prey  of  his  o^\ti 
anxieties,  and  to  him  it  must  be  vexation  that  he  should 
heap  up  for  others. 

EccLESiASTES  III.  1-11. — It  is  a  main  property  of  wis- 
dom to  time  things  rightly ;  and  it  is  the  part  of  wisdom 
to  study  the  congruities  of  time  and  place,  and  to  act  ac- 
cordingly. Both  animals  and  plants  have  their  fixed 
points  for  the  commencement  and  termination  of  their 
being ;  a  time  to  heal,  and  a  time  for  giving  way  to  dis- 
ease as  incurable.  And  so  of  material  as  well  as  living 
structures.  There  are  also  proper  seasons  for  the  differ- 
ent affections  of  the  soul :  a  time  to  pick  up  stones  and 
cast  them  out  of  the  field,  and  a  time  to  gather  them  for 


240  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,  ecclesiastes  hi. 

its  enclosure ;  a  time  to  indulge  in  lawful  pleasures,  and 
a  time  to  abstain  from  them  ;  a  time  for  gain,  and  a  time 
for  expenditure ;  a  time  for  holding  in,  and  a  time  for 
liberality  or  letting  out ;  a  time  to  rend  one's  garments 
as  in  mourning,  and  a  time  for  the  heart  being  whole  and 
the  habits  also.  There  are  fit  times  both  for  speech  and 
silence — seasons  of  peace  and  war.  If  we  work  out  of 
season,  we  work  unprofitablj ;  if  in  season,  it  is  still  for  a 
short-lived  object.  And  thus  it  is  with  all  the  labour 
which  terminates  in  but  an  earthly  acquisition  and  enjoy- 
ment. The  adaptations  of  the  ephemeral  means  to  the 
no  less  ephemeral  ends  are  beautiful ;  and  the  world  is  so 
set  in  the  heart  of  man  that  he  labours  for  its  objects, 
looking  no  further — resting  in  the  various  objects  of  his 
various  special  affections  ;  and  not  understanding,  scarcely 
ever  carrying  his  desires  beyond  what  is  either  before  or 
after — bounded  in  his  views  and  likings  by  the  horizon  of 

what  is  seen  and  temporal Verse  11  is  one  of  the  most 

remarkable  verses  in  the  Bible,  with  a  preciousncss  of 
meaning  in  it,  and  great  profundity. 

12-22. — He  here  repeats  that  the  only  wisdom  for  this 
life  is  to  enjoy  it  with  gratefulness  and  godliness.  And 
we  should  acq«uiesce  in  all  events  as  the  doings  of  God  for 
our  discipline,  and  that  we  might  grow  in  His  fear.  It  is 
now  as  it  has  ever  been,  and  why  then  should  we  think 
it  strange?  for  in  all  He  does  He  is  but  requiring  the  past. 
or  what  has  been  done  already.  And  it  should  dispose  u.s 
all  the  more  to  acquiesce,  that  a  time  is  coming  when  the 
righteous  judgment  of  God  shall  supersede  and  rectify  tlie 
iniquitous  sentences  of  wicked  men.  Apart,  indeed,  from 
this  faith,  and  looking  only  to  things,  where  is  the  differ- 
ence between  men  and  the  inferior  animals?    And  it  were 


EccLEsiASTES  IV.    DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  241 

well  if  the  ungodly  could  be  convinced  by  God,  that 
wanting  the  fear  of  Him,  they — proud,  and  lording  it 
over  others  as  they  do — are  but  like  the  beasts  that 
perish.  And  though  here  there  is  a  distinct  admission 
of  man's  immortality,  yet  in  ignorance  of  what  it  shall 
be  or  what  shall  be  after  him,  does  he  recur  to  his  former 
lesson,  that  it  is  good  to  make  the  most  of  things  pre- 
sent— true  in  a  religious  as  well  as  an  infidel  sense,  agree- 
ably to  the  quotations  already  made  from  other  parts  of 
Scripture. 

EccLESiASTES  IV. — He  had  now  entered  on  another  ob- 
ject of  human  pursuit — ambition  or  poAver  ;  and  feelingly 
laments  the  evil  that  is  in  the  world  from  oppression  or 
tyranny — a  heartless  spectacle  of  the  vanity  of  life.  If 
a  man  succeed  in  ambition,  he  is  envied — if  not,  he  is  a 
prey  to  chagrin  eating  inwardly ;  and  also  the  man  de- 
si^airing  of  any  good  in  this  world  of  violence  from  indus- 
try, lives  idly,  and  is  in  desperation  for  a  maintenance .... 

Verse  6  is  a  notabile And  mark,  too,  the  vanity  of 

these  aspirations  after  grandeur,  more  especially  in  him 
who  has  none  to  succeed  or  to  second  him  in  the  possession 
of  his  great  wealth.  Better  than  being  thus  alone  is  it  tc 
have  some  one  to  participate  in  one's  interests  or  employ^ 
ments — to  sustain  each  other  when  calamity  comes,  or  tc 
strengthen  each  other's  hands  —  It  marks  the  vanity  of 
mere  station  and  power,  that  wisdom  so  ennobles  the  wise 
above  the  foolish  of  highest  rank — insomuch  that  the  for- 
mer may  attain  to  the  preferment  from  which  the  latter 

are  cast  down The  two  last  verses  seem  referable  to  a 

king  and  his  heir-apparent.  There  is  no  end  to  the  fickle- 
ness of  popular  affection.     All  before  the  king  and  his 

VOL.  III.  I. 


242  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,     ecclesiastes  v. 

son  evinced  this  inconstancy,  and  so  also  will  tlie  people 
who  come  after  them ;  so  that  the  present  idol  will  be 
abandoned  as  surely  as  his  father  was  ;  and  this  is  an- 
other view  of  the  vanity  of  ambition. 

Ecclesiastes  v.  1-7. — Here  there  comes  in  a  protest 
against  all  formal  or  will-worship. — My  God,  I  am  re- 
buked by  the  exjoression  of  the  "sacrifice  of  fools'' — (avor)- 
^^^) — in  the  house  of  God.  0  that  I  were  more  ready  to 
hear ;  but  how  I  wander,  even  at  the  Lord's  table  !  And 
what  a  rebuke  in  verse  2  against  long  and  wordy  prayers  ! 
— 0  let  my  heart  prompt  my  mouth  ;  nor  let  me  tliink 
that  I  shall  be  heard  for  my  much  speaking.  God  is  not 
pleased  with  such  sacrifices.  But  though  I  should  not 
utter  prayers  by  tale  and  measure,  let  me  ever  carry  in 
my  heart  a  prayerful  disposition.  A  multitude  of  things 
distracts  the  mind  till  all  seems  as  a  troubled  dream  ;  and 
so  a  multitude  of  words  confuses,  and,  if  I  may  say  so, 
unrealizes  all  the  objects  of  thought  —  Verse  5  is  a  nota- 
bile ;  and  what  an  admirable  sacramental  lesson  may  be 
drawn  from  this  and  the  preceding  verse  ! — Let  me  not 
vow  under  the  impulse  of  a  fancy  that  transfoiTns  the 
possibilities  of  things.  Paul  charges  Timothy  before  God 
and  the  elect  angels,  who  take  cognizance  of  us,  and  will 
note  when  our  promises  go  beyond  our  weak  doings. 

8-20. — There  be  higher  than  the  tyrants  and  oppressors 
of  this  world ;  and  it  should  abate  our  wonder  at  prosper- 
ous injustice  when  we  think  of  the  after  reckoning  by 
which  all  will  be  settled  and  put  right.  God,  who  made 
the  earth  for  all — and  the  king  is  as  dependent  on  its 
produce  as  the  meanest  of  his  subjects — is  no  respecter  of 
persons.     The  desires  of  the  rich  and  powerful  are  sources 


JECCLES1A3TES  VI.    DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  243 

of  misery  from  their  very  insatiableness  ;  and  it  is  little 
of  the  wealth  that  comes  to  the  share  of  its  possessors  ; 
hut  it  is  to  him  a  cause  of  great  and  tormenting  anxiety  ; 
"vvhereas  the  labouring  man  has  enjoyments  which  evince 
a  principle  of  compensation  in  the  ways  of  God  that  will 
be  yet  more  fully  developed.  And  there  is  so  much  of 
vanity  or  vexation,  both  in  the  having  of  riches  and  the 
transference  of  them  to  successors,  that  there  seems  no- 
thing better  than  for  man  to  live  and  enjoy  life  while  he 
may  ;  and  were  there  no  judgment-day  after,  this  were 
his  highest  wisdom.  Even  with  a  judgment — with  all  the 
prospects  of  revelation  full  in  view — there  is  a  wisdom, 
though  not  of  itself  the  highest  wisdom,  in  taking  the  en- 
joyment of  what  God  hath  given  to  us.  Things  present 
are  ours.  Every  creature  of  God  is  good,  and  not  to  be 
refused  if  received  with  thanksgiving.  And  let  us  by  all 
means  dismiss  the  vain  cares  of  accumulation,  and  set  not 
our  affections  upon  treasure. 

EccLESiASTES  VI. — Hc  is  still  on  the  vanity  of  riches. — 
Let  me  not  set  my  heart  upon  them.  Guide  me  to  their 
right  use,  and  give  me  the  disposition  as  well  as  the  wis- 
dom so  to  use  them.  Wliere  lies  the  good  of  all  that  is 
objective,  if  we  have  not  a  subjective  to  be  gratified  there- 
with ?  God  might  take  away  our  relish  for  all  things,  and 
stamp  an  utter  worthlessness  on  the  money  which  pur- 
chaseth  them. — Give  me  Thyself,  0  God  ;  and  shed  abroad 
in  my  heart  the  love  of  Thyself  Nay,  though  all  he 
amasses  go  to  his  own  children  after  a  long  life  spent  in 
sordid  accumulation — so  very  sordid  and  sparing  upon 
himself,  that  he  personally  had  none  of  the  enjo^Tiient  of 
riches — nay,  did  not  even  provide  for  a  decent  funeral,  or 


244  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,  ecclesiastes  vii. 

perhaps  spent  so  penurious  and  discreditable  a  life,  that  he 
was  thought  unworthy  of  one  by  his  suiTiving  neighbours 
and  friends  ; — then,  better  for  such  a  person  were  it  to 
have  been  still-bom,  and  so  been  saved  from  the  toil  and 
disgrace  of  such  an  existence,  however  lengthened  out  it 
might  be.  The  wise  in  this  world  share  alike  with  fools 
in  this  vanity ;  for  although  they  should  succeed  in  the 
supply  of  their  wants,  yet  there  are  insatiable  desires 
which  spring  up  and  leave  them  dissatisfied.  Even  the 
poor,  whose  longings  terminate  in  what  is  necessary  to 
life,  and  who  obtain  the  enjoyment  of  them,  share  with 
their  superiors  in  that  death  which  brings  all  to  a  level. 
Truly,  if  this  world  be  our  all,  it  is  but  a  sickening  con- 
templation 

Ecclesiastes  vii.  1-10. — A  good  name  even  here  is 
precious  ;  but  if  written  in  heaven,  this  will  indeed  make 
the  day  of  our  death  better  than  that  of  our  birth. — My 
God,  let  me  feel  it  good  to  have  been  afflicted ;  and  give 
me  to  learn  wisdom  from  the  deaths  and  disasters  which 
come  on  families.  May  I  be  disciplined  into  seriousness ; 
and  may  the  maxims  of  this  passage  reconcile  me  to  the 
adversities  and  crosses  of  my  earthly  pilgrimage.  Poverty 
may  be  tolerable,  but  not  the  poverty  which  is  the  result  of 
others'  injustice  and  cruelty.     On  the  other  hand,  riches 

may  corrupt  and  destroy What  a  lesson  for  patience, 

that  in  the  end  all  will  be  well  with  the  righteous  !  and  let 
us  not,  therefore,  be  provoked  into  a  haughty  resentment 
by  the  humiliations  which  a  successful  and  over-reaching 
fraud  may  have  laid  upon  us.  Let  me  brace  my  spirit  there- 
fore against  anger ;  and  let  me  compose  my  mind  with  the 
reflection,  that  after  all  nothing  strange  has  happened  to 


EccLEsiASTEs  VII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  245 

me;  and  even  in  former  ages  as  ill  tilings  occurred  as 
now.  Let  us  submit,  then,  to  the  ordinations  of  that 
all-wise  and  overruling  Providence  which  will  bring  every- 
thing right  at  last. 

Augustf  1846. 
11-29. — Riches  are  not  to  be  despised  if  combined  with 
wisdom,  but,  like  all  other  creatures  of  God,  are  good. — 
Give  me  the  knowledge  and  wisdom,  0  Lord,  which  are 
life  everlasting.  Let  me  acquiesce  in  the  ordinations  of 
God,  however  much  they  might  thwart  the  objects  which 
my  heart  had  been  set  upon.  Let  prosperity  and  adver- 
sity be  met  by  us  appropriately.  They  are  made  to  al- 
ternate by  God,  after  whose  appointments  nothing  remains 
for  us  but  submission.  Things  do  not  proceed  equally  in 
this  life May  not  the  "  over-righteousness''  and  "  over- 
wisdom"  of  verse  16,  be  the  will-worship  and  the  in- 
trudinof  into  thing^s  unseen  of  Col.  ii.  18?...  Verse  17  is 
clear  enough  as  a  dissuasive  from  the  reckless  dissipations 
and  crimes  which  bring  one  to  an  untimely  end ;  and  it 
is  comfortable,  amid  all  these  obscurities,  to  meet  with  so 
clear  a  testimony  for  the  fear  of  God  which  will  at  lengih 
extricate  us  from  all  difficulties.  This  is  true  wisdom, 
and  yet  nowhere  perfect  here,  as  is  intimated  in  verse  20, 
which  is  a  decided  notabile. — Then  follows  the  wisdom  of 
a  proverbialist  in  regard  to  our  not  giving  ear  to  what  is 
said  of  us.  But  he  complains  of  a  mystery  beyond  his 
depths ;  and  at  length  gives  as  his  experience  the  bitter 
evils  of  licentiousness.  It  is  possible  that  such  may  have 
been  his  power  of  seduction,  that  every  woman  he  at- 
tempted gave  Avay  before  it ;  and  hence  his  deliverance 
on  the  subject.  And  none  of  this  wickedness  is  charge- 
able upon  God,  but  upon  man,  who  was  created  upright, 


246  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,  ecclesiastes  viii. 

but  himself  went  waywardly  astray  into  many  devious 
bypaths. 

Ecclesiastes  viii. — The  wise  man,  if  fully  so,  has  the 
meekness  of  wisdom,  and  looks  not  with  severity  on 
others.  "VVe  have  also  here  the  duty  of  loyalty,  and  on 
the  principle  of  godliness,  too.  Do  not  offend  the  king, 
then,  by  flying  oif  from  him  in  an  insolent  or  disrespect- 
ful way. — Solomon  could  speak  of  the  power  of  monarchs. 
. . .  Thou  shalt  avoid  trouble  by  submissive  obedience — ■ 
and  act  discreetly,  fitly,  seasonably — for  it  is  by  a  non- 
observance  of  fitnesses  that  man  incurs  great  misery ; 
and  his  ignorance  of  futurity  lays  him  open  to  much 
error  of  conduct.  At  all  events,  death  is  surely  coming ; 
and  let  us  cease  from  the  wickedness  that  will  not  avail 
us  for  defence  against  the  last  messenger  and  enemy. 
And  it  is  for  rulers,  therefore,  as  well  as  subjects,  to  be 
conscientious  and  sober-minded.  And  thus,  even  wicked 
judges,  who  sat  on  the  tribunals  of  the  metropolis  or  holy 
place,  were  disgraced  and  degraded  in  public  estimation 
after  their  deaths.  The  fate  of  the  wicked  will  certainly 
be  accomjilished,  however  secure  or  stable  they  might  feel 
their  positions  to  be. — Verse  11  is  a  notabile. — However 
long  their  tenure  of  prosperity  and  power  in  this  world, 
it  will  be  ill  with  the  wicked  and  well  only  with  the 
righteous.  Our  days  at  the  best  are  but  a  shadow.  Look- 
ing only  to  these,  it  does  appear  both  a  vanity  and  an 
enigma  that  the  like  final  event  seems  to  happen  to  all. 
It  were  best  to  enjoy  the  world  while  we  have  it  were 
there  no  hereafter  ;  better  this  than  the  fruitless  and 
fatiguing  cares  of  him  who  labours  to  penetrate  the  un- 
known and  unknowable. 


EccLESiASTES  X.     DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  217 

EccLESiASTES  IX. — So  enigmatical  is  our  world  that 
though  all  is  in  the  hand  of  God,  we  cannot  i:)ronounce  on 
wliom  He  loves,  or  whom  He  hates,  from  their  state  here. 
The  evil  of  this  is  that  men  ahandon  themselves  to  regard- 
lessness.  Still  life  is  better  than  death  ;  for  "  while  there 
is  life  there  is  hope  ;''  and  in  making  the  most  of  things 
present,  we  may  realize   something   more  eligible  than 

mere  insensibility Verses  5-10  form  a  notabile  ;  and 

verses  10  and  11  special  ones.  Apart  from  the  faith  of  im- 
mortality, the  moral  given  in  these  is  the  wisest  for  such  a 
condition ;  and  with  a  well-grounded  faith  in  it,  the  lesson 
is  one  of  confiding  and  thankful  enjoyment  of  "  things 
present.'' — Let  us  do  what  is  good  with  all  our  might, 
yet  dependingly  on  Him  without  whose  blessing  all  hu- 
man effort  is  of  no  avail.  After  another  reflection  on 
the  latter  end  of  this  our  mysterious  being,  he  passes 
censure  on  the  ingratitude  and  inconsideration  of  those 
who  forget  their  obligation  to  a  poor  but  wise  man. — And 
then  follows  verse  17,  a  very  memorable  one  in  these  days 
of  mobocracy  Whereas  he  had  just  stated  what  service 
was  done  by  one  wise  man,  he  concludes  with  a  statement 
of  the  counterpart  mischief  that  might  be  effected  by  one 
sinner. 

EccLESiASTES  X.  1-9. — Vcrso  1,  a  most  interesting  nota- 
bile.— The  "dead  fly  in  the  pot  of  ointment''  is  a  loud 
call  for  gravity  and  well-sustained  sense.  The  "wise 
man's  heart  being  at  his  right  hand,"  is  more  significant 
of  his  being  set  on  right  objects  than  of  his  dexterity  in 
the  prosecution  of  them.  The  very  movements  of  a  fool,  or 
way  of  going  about  things,  proclaim  his  folly  —  To  "  leavc 
thy  place,"  may  signify  to  renounce  thy  duty  as  a  subject. 


548  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,     ecclesiastks  x. 

The  cliarm  of  yielding  is  worthy  of  being  specially  noted, 
so  as  to  make  the  last  clause  of  verse  4  a  notabile.  He 
here  remarks  on  the  evil  and  offence  of  those  unworthy 

prefennents  which  emanate  from  the  chief  magistrate 

The  circumstance  of  wealth  being  contrasted  with  folly 
in  verse  6,  proves  that,  in  association  with  the  former,  a 
fair  proportion  of  wisdom  and  good  sense  is  presupposed. 
There  is  a  natural  homage  rendered  to  family  and  for- 
tune ;  and  even  this  ought  not  to  be  unnecessarily  con- 
travened in  the  disposal  of  dignities  ;  for  if  not,  the  public 
feeling  is  scandalized,  and  this  in  spite  of  all  factitious 
radicalism,  when  servants  are  set  on  horses,  and  princes 
walk  afoot.  Let  there  be  neither  a  secret  conspiracy 
against  the  established  order  of  things,  nor  a  violent 
mroad  on  its  fences  and  landmarks  ;  else  there  may  be  a 
recoil  on  the  perpetrators  themselves,  just  as  the  renders 
and  pullers  down  of  things  material  are  in  danger  of 
being  hurt  therewith. 

10-20. — Wisdom  is  better  than  strength;  and  let  us 
therefore  proceed  warily  when  bent  on  the  attainment  of 
any  good,  or  the  removal  of  any  evil.  More  particularly, 
as  enchantment  will  disarm  the  serpent,  so  will  discreet 
management  the  babbler — for  it  is  not  by  fighting  him 
with  his  own  weapons,  but  with  skill  and  sound  speaking 
and  acting,  that  he  is  to  be  met.  The  wise  man  will  in- 
gratiate himself  by  his  words — whereas  those  of  a  fool 
will  come  back  with  overwhelming  recoil  upon  himself 
The  outgoings  of  foolish  speech  proceed  from  a  fountain- 
head  of  folly  within  ;  and  they  end  in  that  violence  and 
mischief  which  are  ascribed  elsewhere  to  the  tongue,  that 
setteth  on  fire  the  course  of  nature,  and  is  itself  set  on 
fire  of  hell.     The  fool  will  talk  and  talk  on  as  confidently 


ECCLESIASTE9  XI.    DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  249 

as  if  he  knew  all  things — whereas  man  is  profoundly 
ignorant  of  most  things,  for  the  evolution  of  which  in 
futurity,  it  is  his  truest  wisdom  to  wait  in  silence.  The 
fool  will  expatiate  in  speaking  and  speculating  among 
things  profound — whereas  he  gives  proof  of  his  being  an 
incapable,  even  by  his  gross  ignorance  and  incompetency 
in  the  plainest  matters.  Let  me  treasure  up  this  against 
the  transcendentalists,  whose  perversity  in  things  practical 
I  have  so  fatiguingly  and  fruitlessly  attempted  to  with- 
stand. And  hence  the  misfortune  of  a  land  being  under 
a  childish  monarch,  as  contrasted  with  its  wellbeing  when 

under  the  worthy  son  of  worthy  ancestors The  chapter 

concludes  with  denunciations  against  idleness  and  squan- 
dering, and  at  the  same  time  disloyal  declamation  not- 
withstanding. 

EccLESiASTES  XL — My  God,  teach  me  more  and  more  of 
the  grace  of  liberality,  and  let  the  prospect  of  coming  evils 
upon  our  land  incline  me  the  more  to  it.  Let  us  imitate 
the  clouds  in  their  effusiveness,  or  the  trees  in  their  fruit- 
fulness  of  what  is  good.  "We  shall  be  judged  by  our  works : 
as  death  found  us,  judgment  will  pronounce  upon  us. 
And  let  us  not  linger  among  vain  calculations,  but  avail 
ourselves  of  present  openings  for  beneficence  and  charity. 
Duties  are  ours,  events  are  God's.  Let  me  not  suspend 
certain  and  present  duties  on  unknown  and  distant  events. 
Let  what  is  right  be  done  in  its  season — committing  all 
futurity  to  Him  who  alone  hath  the  full  foresight  and  dis- 
posal of  it.  Light  is  sweet;  life  is  a  great  blessing; — but 
how  to  prolong  this?  Death  is  coming.  The  days  of 
darkness  and  unconsciousness  are  before  us.  The  young 
may  rejoice  in  his  current  gratifications,  but  these  will 

l2 


250  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,  ecclesiastes  xn. 

soon  terminate ;  and  God  will  place  us  all  before  His 
tribunal — an  intimation  of  sucli  a  judgment  here  as  is  tan- 
tamount to  tlie  intimation  of  an  immortality  after  it.  To 
provide  for  this  let  us  remove  every  distempered  affection 
from  our  hearts,  and  put  evil  away  from  our  outward 
doings. — Save  me  from  the  sins  of  my  youth,  0  God. 

EccLESiASTES  XII. — The  way  of  prolonging  that  light 
and  life  which  are  so  pleasant  to  the  soul,  is  to  remember 
our  Creator  here — that  He  in  mercy  might  remember  us 
hereafter. — Then  follows  a  most  memorable  passage  from 
verse  1  to  verse  7.  The  head,  and  the  amis,  and  the  legs, 
and  the  eyes,  and  the  teeth,  are  most  elegantly  set  forth 
in  figures.  The  whitening  of  the  head  is  represented  by 
the  flourishing  of  the  almond  tree.  Wliat  I  myself  most 
feel  is  the  nervousness  of  fears  in  the  way,  and  things 

light  as  grasshoppers  being  burdens  to  me How  truly 

beautiful  is  verse  6,  and  how  decisive  of  immortality  is 
verse  7  !  The  great  moral  of  the  whole  is  the  vanity  of 
this  world — if  this  world  be  indeed  our  all ;  a  lesson  given 
forth  by  him  who  in  his  time  gave  many  lessons. — Let 
his  words  be  my  incitements  to  what  is  right,  and  let 

them  adhere  to  me The  "  masters''  here  are  the  writers 

of  Scripture,  all  furnished  by  the  same  Holy  Spirit  with 
those  truths  which  it  is  for  ministers  to  deal  forth  among 
their  congregations. — Let  the  Bible  henceforth  satisfy  me 
more  than  it  has  hitherto  done,  and  let  me  retire  from 

the  fatigues  and  cares  of  authorship How  conclusive 

are  these  closing  sentences  ;  and  why  is  it  that  after  the 
gleams  of  light  which  this  Book  casts  on  the  doctrine,  it 
should  still  be  doubted  whether  a  future  state  was  known 
in  the  davs  of  the  Old  Testament  ? 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  251 


SONG  OF  SOLOMON. 

Song  i. — The  autliorsliip  of  this  piece  is  inscribed  upon 
its  forehead. — My  God,  spirituaHze  my  aifections.  Giro 
me  to  know  what  it  is  to  have  the  intense  and  passionate 
love  of  Christ.  Let  me  find  of  this  love  that  it  is  better 
than  all  earthly  desires  and  gratifications.     Draw  me,  0 

God,  to  Christ,  (verse  4,  and  John  vi.  44.) The  Clfurch 

is  black,  sometimes  with  misfortune — as  when  persecuted, 
at  others  with  corruption — as  when  tempted. — My  God, 
have  I  not  kept  other  vineyards  than  Thine — gone  over 
to  the  care  of  secular  interests  and  secular  managements, 
to  the  neglect  of  spiritualities !  0  may  I  seek  first  Thy 
kingdom  and  Thy  righteousness.  Let  me  seek  now  unto 
Christ,  and  not  turn  aside  from  Him  unto  other  causes 
which  may  appear  cognate  with  His,  but  which  as  far  as 
they  are  good,  are  best  promoted  by  the  direct  work  of 
christianizing  and  spiritualizing  the  souls  of  men.  Direct 
me  aright,  0  God.  Let  me  feed  from  the  writings  of  the 
inspired  men,  these  shepherds  of  the  Church  ;  and  0  that 
experimentally  I  were  conducted  to  the  habit  of  feasting 
with  Him,  and  Him  with  me. 

Song  ii. — Give  me,  0  Lord,  to  love  Christ  both  for  what 
He  is  in  Himself  and  for  His  love  to  me.  May  His  love 
to  me  constrain  me  to  love  Him  back  again.  I  Jong  for 
mutual  and  confiding  intercourse.  May  He  no  longer 
be  lightly  esteemed  by  me,  but  esteemed  as  altogether 
lovely.  I  desire  to  feast  with  Him,  and  Him  with  me. 
I  would  sit  down  with  great  delight  under  the  canopy  of 
His  mediatorship,  rejoicing  in  the  abundance  of  peace  and 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


love.  Let  no  human  companionships,  nor  representations 
of  human  authors,  disturb  my  intercourse  with  the  Saviour, 
or  give  me  other  than  the  scriptural  and  spiritual  view  of 
Him,  though  when  Himself  pleases  He  withdraws.  He 
at  times  hides  Himself,  and  keeps  back  the  manifestations 
of  His  countenance,  and  even  the  power  of  His  word  from 
lis.  The  best  way  of  restoring  these  is  to  walk  holily,  and 
put  away  our  deceitful — even  our  least  sins.  He  who 
hath  the  Son  hath  life. — May  I  have  Him,  and  that  He 
may*be  mine ;  and  I  be  of  those,  to  whom  it  may  be  said 
— "  ye  are  Christ^s."  (1  John  v.  12 ;  1  Cor.  iii.  23.)  He  de^ 
lights  in  His  Church,  rejoicing  over  it. — Turn  unto  me,  0 
Saviour,  and  come  quickly. 

SoxG  III.  —  But  He  retires  into  dimness  and  distance 
from  my  soul.  Let  me  search  after  Him  if  haply  I  may 
find  Him.  Let  me  search  for  Him  in  His  word,  or  at  the 
mouths  of  His  ministers — those  watchmen  of  the  Church, 
asking  counsel  of  judicious  and  experienced  Christians. 
After  finding  Him,  0  may  I  retain  Him — keeping  alive 
in  my  heart  a  sense  of  His  presence,  and  of  His  love  for 
me.  Possess  me,  0  God,  in  this  way  with  Christ.  Admit 
nie  to  the  intimacy  of  His  fellowship — that  I  may  rejoice 
in  Him  with  joy  unspeakable  and  ftdl  of  glory.  Many  of 
tr.e  passages  are  illustrated  by  commentators,  who  cast 

Xi^em  into  the  form  of  a  dialogue Verse  6  is  conceived 

to  be  a  question  put  by  spectators,  who  form  a  third 
party  between  Christ  and  His  Church.  The  inquiry  is 
tnought  to  regard  the  Church,  made  up  of  multitudes, 
like  pillars  of  smoke.  The  subsequent  description  might 
relate  to  the  glories  of  that  place  into  which  His  disciples 
are  brought,  and  to  the  glories  of  His  own  character 


SONG  IV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  l>r,3 

and  person.  Tliougli  Solomon  be  named,  yet  a  greater 
than  Solomon  is  here.  He  provides  a  strong  and  ample 
guardianship  for  His  people  :  His  angels  are  ministering 
spirits,  who  minister  unto  the  heirs  of  salvation. — Let  us 
rejoice  in  the  abundance  of  this  security  and  peace.  Christ 
is  highly  exalted,  and  by  God  the  Father,  who  hath  given 
Him  a  name  above  every  name.  Let  us  go  forth  and  be- 
hold Him.  Let  us  consider  Him  who  is  the  Apostle  and 
High  Priest  of  our  profession.  Let  us  look  unto  Jesus. 
(Heb.  xii.  2.) 

Song  iv. — This  seems  a  description  of  the  graces  of  the 
Church  by  Him  who  is  her  Husband.  How  much  better 
is  her  love  than  wine !  To  love  God  is  better  than  all 
sacrifices  and  burnt-offerings ;  and  surely  not  more  accept- 
able to  God  than  delicious  to"  the  moral  taste  of  man 
himself,  when  regenerated  and  made  a  new  creature  o£ 
0  that  love  to  things  sacred — and  more  especially  the  lova 
which  attends  fellowship  with  the  Father  and  the  Son-^ 
how  much  more  precious  is  this  than  the  relish  of  our 
most  exquisite  physical  gratifications  ! ...  It  is  pleasant  to 
recognise  expressions  in  this  Book  which  harmonize  with 
other  Scriptures,  and  serve  to  identify  it  with  them  as 
an  inspired  composition.  I  therefore  seize  on  the  clause 
in  verse  15 — "  a  well  of  living  waters.''  (See  John  vii.  38  ; 
iv.  14.)  Strike  out  in  my  heart,  0  God,  a  well  of  living 
water — that  abounding  in  all  fruitfulness  I  may  be  well- 
pleasing  in  thine  eyes,  and  Christ  may  see  in  me  of  the 
travail  of  His  soul,  and  be  satisfied. — 0  may  the  Spirit, 
who  bloweth  where  He  listeth,  blow  upon  His  Church,  and 
cause  it  to  abound  more  and  more  in  all  the  fair  and 
pleasant  fniits  of  righteousness.     Tlien  will  He  indeed  bo 


254  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  song  vi. 

satisfied  witli  the  travail  of  His  own  soul ;  for  tlie  Spirit 
is  the  fruit  of  His  purchase,  and  it  is  a  fruit  which  is 
sweet  unto  His  taste. 

Song  v. — Yerse  1  is  a  memorabile,  often  repeated  on 
sacramental  occasions,  as  being  Christ's  invitation  to  His 
guests.  But  the  invitation  is  often  not  fully  responded 
to.  Excuses  are  often  made  for  not  yielding  a  present 
compliance.  The  invitation  may  be  read,  yet  not  efiectu- 
ally ;  and  doubtless  the  sloth  of  the  mind,  and  its  aver- 
sion to  the  sacrifices  and  renunciations  which  the  Grospel 
requires  of  us,  have  an  important  share  in  producing  our 
sluoforishness  and  inertness  under  even  the  most  awaken- 
ing  calls.  Yet  sinking  again  under  a  sense  of  dreariness 
and  desertion,  will  we  go  in  quest  of  Him  who  should 
be  all  our  desire,  as  He  is  all  our  salvation.  But  many 
are  the  obstacles  in  the  way — unfaithful  ministers,  per- 
secutors, spiritual  adversaries,  all  stand  as  barriers  be- 
tween us  and  Christ,  whose  graces  and  attractions  should 
nevertheless  impel  our  footsteps  towards  Him. — 0  may 
I  long  vehemently  for  union  with  Him,  even  till  it  be 
effected. 

Song  vi. — The  imagination  of  a  dialogue  conducts  many 
a  commentator  through  passages  that  might  be  otherwise 
inexplicable.  The  question  of  verse  1  is  conceived  to  have 
come  from  the  daughters  of  Jerusalem.  It  is  well  said 
here  by  Henry,  that  such  a  question  were  indecent  if  this 
song  is  to  be  understood  literally,  but  not  so  when  taken 
in  the  spiritual  sense ;  for  all,  whether  in  the  Church  or 
out  of  it,  should  be  desirous  of  an  approach  to  Christ,  and 
fellowship  with  Him.     Christ's  office  is  to  gather  lilies — 


BONG  vTi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  255 

to  gather,  from  a  world  lying  in  wickedness,  tliose  whom 
He  might  transform  into  the  flowers  and  fruits  of  a  well- 
watered  garden Verse  4,  and  more  especially  verse  10, 

are  memorabilia  often  quoted  and  applied  to  the  Church. 
The  description  here  given  of  her  graces  is  much  the  same 
with  that  of  ch.  iv.  1-3.  In  virtue  of  these  she  is  prefer- 
red before  all  other  competitors.  She  stands  alone  in  the 
regards  of  Him  who  has  redeemed  her,  and  redeemed 
for  the  end  of  sanctifying  her.  He  gave  Himself  for  it, 
that  He  might  sanctify  and  cleanse  it,  and  make  of  it  a 
glorious  Church,  not  having  spot  or  wrinkle,  or  any  such 
thing. — 0  my  God,  thus  ally  and  affiance  me  with  Christ. 
I  want  a  more  intimate  and  abiding,  and  withal  sensible 
union  to  Him.  0  grant  that  even  they  who  are  without 
may  recognise  in  me  the  beauties  of  the  Christian  charac- 
ter ;  and  more  especially  may  He  Himself  who  is  repre- 
sented as  going  down  to  see  the  fruits  of  the  valley,  see 
in  me  the  fruits  of  His  own  hand  as  a  sanctifier.  Thou 
canst  translate  me  suddenly,  or  before  I  am  aware,  from 

darkness  into  marvellous  light The   "  Shulamite ''  is 

the  Church. 

Song  vii. — Tlien  follows  another  description  of  the 
Church,  it  is  thought,  by  Christ.  Strength  and  beauty 
are  united  in  her  composition. — 0  that  Christ  so  loved 
me,  and  that  I  had  a  corresponding  love  to  Christ.  Grace 
me,  Lord  Jesus,  with  all  the  virtues  which  are  well- 
pleasing  in  Thy  sight,  that  Tliou  mayest  rejoice  over 
me,  and  say  of  the  new  creation  what  was  said  of  the 
old,  ere  deformed  and  corrupted  by  sin — "  And  God  saw 
every  thing  that  He  had  made,  and  behold  it  was  very 
good."     0  that  the  Son  of  God  might  say  of  me — How 


256  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


SONG  VIII. 


fair  and  how  pleasant  art  thou  !  And  let  me  be  enabled 
to  say,  that  I  am  Christ's,  and  His  desire  is  towards  me. 
Be  my  companion,  0  Lord ;  and  as  Thou  didst  with 
the  disciples  in  going  to  Emmaus,  open  my  understand- 
ing to  understand  Thy  Scriptures.  Let  me  press  onward 
to  higher  degrees  of  communion  ;  and  let  the  outgoings 
of  my  soul  be  ever  more  and  more  towards  Him.  Let 
me  give  Him  my  obedience  as  the  fruit  of  my  love  to 
Him. 

Song  viii. — I  long  for  a  more  familiar  and  endearing 
view  of  Christ ;  and  though  I  gave  Him  my  whole  heart 
and  soul,  so  as  that  men  might  wonder  at  the  first,  yet 
would  I  at  length  gain  their  respect,  even  as  wisdom  is 
justified  of  her  children.  The  presence  of  Christ  in  the 
Church  makes  all  its  ordinances  fruitful. — Let  me  study 
to  please  Christ  by  the  odour  of  my  graces.  Then  would 
He  take  up  His  abode  with  me  ;  and  0  that  the  world 
and  men  of  the  world  had  less  power  to  banish  Him  from 

my  thoughts,  or  to  interrupt  the  communion  betwixt  us 

I  can  understand  that  verse  5  is  first  a  question  respect- 
ing the  bride  from  the  daughters  of  Jemsalem ;  but  the 
latter  half  is  to  me  ver}^  unintelligible.  Then  in  verse  6 
she  addresses  Christ — pressing  after  Him,  and  praying  for 

His  favour  and  protection The  "little  sister"  may  be  the 

Gentile  Church,  not  yet  in  being;  or  a  natural  man  not  yet 
created  anew.  Let  eveiy  good  work  begun  in  her  be 
perfected.     Let  us  graft  upon  her  capabilities  that  which 

may  advance  her  into  a  full  grown  Christianity The 

vineyard  is  a  type  of  the  Church.  Christ,  the  Lord  of  the 
vineyard,  will  look  for  fruit ;  and  they  who  cultivate  it 
aright  will  be  gainers  by  their  service. 


DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  5.o7 


ISAIAH. 

Isaiah  i.  1-9. — Prophecy  should  be  deeply  studied — 
yet  even  to  the  most  cursoiy  reader  there  are  most  pre- 
cious gleanings,  which  are  all  we  shall  aim  at,  instead  of 
trying  in  these  slight  notices  to  fetch  up  the  treasures 
which  lie  beneath.  And  at  the  very  outset  how  palpable, 
yet  how  weighty  are  the  utterances  of  Isaiah  —  Verses 
2  and  3  are  memorabilia  of  a  high  order.  The  rebellious 
ingratitude  of  man,  and  his  regardlessness  of  God  are 
chargeable  on  all  men — though  the  charges  are  in  this 
instance  called  forth  by  the  perversity  of  Israel.  It  marks 
very  strongly  how  inveterate  their  moral  disease  was,  that 
it  was  beyond  the  reach  of  all  outward  appliances.  Even 
chastisements  but  exasperated  it  the  more,  and  added  to 

its  virulence The  last  clause  of  verse  5  is  a  notabile. 

All  medicine  was  thrown  away  upon  them,  and  therefore 
it  is  not  administered,  and  so  their  visitations  come  upon 
them  in  the  form  of  penalty,  and  not  of  chastisement. 
"We  can  image  nothing  more  beautiful  or  poetic  than  the 
affecting  similitudes  wherewith   the  prophet  represents 

the  desolations  of  Zion One  gladly  recognises  a  verse 

quoted  by  Paul  on  the  subject  of  election  ;  and  indeed 
every  trace  of  a  connexion  between  the  Old  and  New 
Testament  is  invaluable. 

10-20. — He  reprovingly  entitles  Israel  by  the  names 
of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah.  And  what  a  noble  principle  is 
here  propounded — the  same  with  that  of  Hosea — "  I 
will  have  mercy  and  not  sacrifices.''  In  the  progress  of 
revelation  downward,  the  older  Economy  is  more  and  more 
refined  and  purified  from  its  grossness,  and  the  letter 


25»  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  t. 

gradually  gives  way  to  the  spirit.  It  was  indeed  a  most 
offensive  hypocrisy  to  Him  whose  eyes  are  as  a  flame  of 
fire,  when  these  formal  worshippers  came  forth  with  the 
oblations  of  their  outward  service,  while  their  hearts  and 
lives  were  full  of  all  impurity  and  wickedness.  And  how 
the  remonstrance  breaks  forth  into  a  high  style  of  moral 
injunctions  ! — 0  my  God,  let  me  not  darken  these  sayings 
by  an  artificial  orthodoxy,  but  call  on  men  everywhere 

to  repent,   and   to   do    works   meet   for   repentance 

Verses  11-18  make  up  an  illustrious  notabile,  and  the  last 
verse  of  the  passage  is  pre-eminently  such. — Let  me 
preach  both  to  myself  and  others  the  baptism  of  repent- 
ance for  the  remission  of  sins.  God's  favour  or  disfavour 
hinged  on  the  obedience  and  disobedience  of  the  children 
of  Israel. 

21-81. — A  fearful  account  of  the  degeneracy  of  Jerusalem 
— especially  in  the  upper  classes,  and  among  the  people 
of  station  and  authority.  What  an  expressive  saying — 
"  I  will  ease  me  of  mine  adversaries.""  The  punishment 
and  destruction  of  sinners  are  congenial  to  the  Divine 
nature,  and  there  is  a  sweet  savour  unto  God — not  only 
in  them  that  are  saved,  but  in  them  that  perish.  (2  Cor. 
ii.  15.)  ...  Verse  24  I  hold  to  be  a  notabile,  and  also  verse 
25,  for  the  sake  of  the  expression — "  1  will  purge  thy 
dross,  and  take  away  all  thy  tin;''  after  which  Jei-usalem, 
restored  as  at  the  first,  will  become  a  city  of  righteousness. 
Thus,  too,  at  the  end  of  the  world  will  the  tares  be  separated 
from  the  wheat,  and  God  will  ease  Himself  of  them  by 
cajising  them  to  be  bound  up  in  bundles  and  burned — ■ 
after  which  he  will  reign  over  a  pure  and  righteous  family, 
among  whom  nothing  that  is  unclean  or  unholy  can  enter. 
Judgment  and  righteousness  will  preside  over  the  whole 


ISAIAH  II.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  259 

work  of  the  redemption  of  Zion — whether  of  Jei-usalem  or 
the  Christian  Church.  Obstinate  sinners  shall  be  con- 
sumed ;  but  the  converted  shall  with  penitential  shame 
and  sorrow  renounce  their  old  idolatries.  The  wicked, 
too,  will  be  ashamed  of  the  idols  in  which  they  trusted. 
And  they  that  made  them  shall  be  like  unto  them — 
like  their  own  useless  oak  and  unfruitful  gardens ;  and 
both  the  strong  man  and  his  work  shall  be  burned 
together. 

Isaiah  il  1-9. — Verses  2-4  form  an  illustrious  notabile  ; 
and  we  doubt  not  that  the  complete  fulfilment  of  them  is 
still  to  come. — Hasten  it  in  Thy  good  time,  0  Lord. 
Israel  shall  at  length  be  exalted  to  a  place  above  all  the 
powers  and  dignities  of  this  world  ;  and  the  kings  of  the 
earth,  as  well  as  its  people  will  do  them  homage.  A 
general  Christianity  among  the  Gentiles  will  be  the  result 
of  that  coming  restoration  of  the  Jews  to  their  own  land, 
when  Jerusalem  shall  be  the  metropolis  of  the  Christian 
world,  and  there  will  be  established  there  a  great  central 
college  for  the  lessons  of  the  Gospel. — Let  us  call  now  on 
the  Jews  to  walk  in  the  light  of  the  Lord,  and  so  speed  on 
this  blessed  consummation.  StiU  they  are  a  forsaken 
people — rejected  of  God  because  they  rejected  his  Son, 
and  to  recall  their  other  sins  of  former  years,  because  they 
incorporated  idolatrous  strangers  with  themselves,  and 
adopted  their  practices  and  ways.  And  they  are  given 
over  wholly  to  the  pursuit  of  wealth,  and  the  god  of  this 
world — from  the  highest  to  the  lowest  of  them.  There- 
fore are  they  not  yet  forgiven. 

10-22. — But  an  awful  manifestation  is  coming — which 
will  overawe  and  solemnize  men,  leading  them  to  call  on 


260  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  in. 

the  rocks  to  cover  them.  The  earth  at  present  is  almost 
wholly  given  over  to  idolatry ;  but  a  time  is  at  hand  when 
the  Creator  will  make  open  assertion  of  his  supremacy 
over  all  creatures,  and  God  alone  shall  be  exalted  in  that 
day.  Our  ships,  and  our  commerce,  and  our  political  great- 
ness, and  our  splendid  works  of  beauty  and  art — these  are 
^diat  we  now  gloiy  in  ;  but  all  shall  be  brought  low.  And 
we  think  that  some  fearful  miraculous  demonstrations  are 
awaiting  us,  by  which  to  bring  down  the  proud  confidence 
of  man,  and  to  make  us  cease  from  all  dependence  on  our 
fellows — high  it  may  be  in  power  or  fortune  or  talent,  but 
still  weak  and  sinful  and  mortal  as  ourselves.  There  is 
doubtless  in  high  places,  and  throughout  the  community 
at  large,  an  exulting  hope  in  the  progress  and  prosperity 
of  the  world  from  secondary  causes,  and  the  skill  where- 
with they  are  plied  by  human  sagacity  for  the  advance- 
ment of  our  species.  All  this  will  be  put  to  shame  and  to 
flight,  when  He  the  first  and  only  efficient  cause  shall 
make  direct  exhibition  of  his  own  high  prerogatives,  and 
shall  arise  to  shake  terribly  the  earth.  Let  us  wait  for 
this  coming  of  the  Lord. 

Isaiah  hi.  1-9. — The  prophet  now  turns  him  more  es- 
pecially to  his  own  country.  It  speaks  much  for  the  gra- 
dation of  ranks  as  to  consequence,  that  beside  the  threat- 
ened calamity  of  famine,  there  is  denounced  upon  them 
the  loss  of  their  great  men — great  no  doubt  most  of  them 
in  virtue  of  their  personal  qualifications  ;  but  still  it  shows 
the  vast  importance  of  government,  and  one  of  strength 
too,  that  it  is  spoken  of  as  a  great  evil  when  children  are 
princes  and  babes  are  rulers,  and  also  when  the  people  them- 
selves are  oppressors — for  these  upstarts  are  commonly  the 


ISAIAH  III.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  261 

worst  of  tyrants.  It  was  a  sad  pass  for  the  Jews  to  be 
brought  to,  when  in  the  desperation  of  their  wants  and 
helplessness  they  went  a  begging  for  masters  who  might 
govern  and  command  them,  and  the  distinction  was  refused 
because  of  the  utter  powerlessness  on  the  part  of  any  to 
do  them  good.  This  was  all  the  result  of  their  own  dis- 
obedience— in  word  as  well  as  in  deed.  They  insulted 
Him  who  is  the  Lord  of  glory  and  cannot  be  mocked. 
They  brought  it  all  upon  themselves  ;  for  they  gloried  in 
their  shame.  They  proclaimed  aloud  their  misdeeds  and 
boasted  of  them.  There  is  an  infamous  species  of  dissipa- 
tion which  does  show  itself  in  the  countenance  so  as  to 
bespeak  the  worthless  debauchee. 

10-26. — The  respective  dealings  of  God  with  the  righte- 
ous and  the  wicked  are  here  authoritatively  set  down  ; 
and  the  misery  of  a  weak  government  again  intimated — • 
when  women  and  children  are  placed  over  a  nation.  But 
besides  this  there  may  be  a  corrupt  government  misleading 
the  people — and  a  tyrannical  government  lording  it  cruelly 
and  oppressively  over  them.  In  the  remonstrance  with 
these  last,  there  occurs  a  notabile  at  verse  15 — the  expres- 
sion of  "  grinding  the  faces  of  the  poor.''  But  the  most 
striking  passage  in  this  chapter,  is  that  which  sets  forth  the 
habit  and  at  length  the  sore  humiliation  of  the  daughters 
of  Zion.  How  it  marks  the  identity  of  our  nature  in  all 
ages,  to  compare  the  description  of  the  belles  upwards  of 
two  thousand  years  ago  with  those  of  the  present  day — 
walking  and  mincing  as  they  go.  They  are  completely 
alike — not  in  their  fashions,  but  in  the  fantastic  variety  of 
fashion,  and  all  its  pomps  and  fineries — the  description 
of  which  in  this  place  is  very  spirited  and  piquant ;  but 
what  a  hideous  reverse,  when  disgrace  and  defamation 


262  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  v. 

shall  be  inflicted  on  tlie  Tvomen,  and  the  men  shall  fall 
by  the  sword  ? 

Isaiah  iv. — This  chapter  takes  up  a  like  desolation  and 
distress  with  what  has  just  been  pourtraved — only  it  points 
forvN^ard  to  such  a  futurity  as  lies  still  before  us.  We  can- 
not apply  the  bulk  of  the  chapter  to  the  nearer  calamity 
predicted  by  Isaiah ;  and  we  therefore  look  forward  to  a 
time  Avhen  a  refuge  will  be  opened  from  a  general  and 
wide  spread  distress,  and  the  escaped  of  God's  people  shall 
have  a  something  beautiful  and  glorious  and  full  of  ex- 
cellence and  fruit  to  which  they  might  resort Christ  is 

called  the  Branch  in  various  places  of  Scripture — a  branch 

out  of  the  stem  of  Jesse,  &c The  remnant  who  shall 

survive  the  destiTiction  that  is  to  come  among  meji  will  be 
a  holy  remnant — in  part  by  the  removal  of  all  who  were 
polluted  by  vice  and  violence,  and  in  part  by  the  refor- 
mation of  those  who  have  humbled  themselves  under  the 
chastening  hand  of  the  Lord.  The  latter  process  seems  to 
be  intimated  by  what  our  prophet  tells  of  the  spirit  of 
judgment  and  the  spirit  of  burning.  Then  will  God  in- 
terpose for  His  Church,  as  He  did  for  the  Israelites  of  old 
— for  the  Church  in  the  wilderness.  Then  will  be  glorv^, 
and  glory  beyond  the  reach  of  hostile  violence — for 
upon  all  the  glory  shaU  be  a  defence.  This  last  expression, 
too,  is  a  notabile. — 0  God,  may  that  brilliant  era  arrive 
speedily. 

Isaiah  v.  1-8. — The  similitude  here  emj^loyed  of  Israel, 
or  of  the  Church,  to  a  vineyard,  bears  on  the  inspiration 
of  the  Song  of  Solomon  ;  and  so  does  the  endearing  epi- 
thet of  "  my  well -beloved."     The  passage  is  replete  with 


ISAIAH  V.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  263 

instruction. — My  God,  make  me  fruitful,  and  forbid  that  I 
should  bring  forth  wild  grapes ;  but  such  fruits  as  Thou 

lookest  for,  and  as  are  well-pleasing  to  Thee What  an 

impressive  appeal  is  here  made — "  What  more  could  I  have 
done  that  I  have  not  done  V  Verily  we  have  much  to  an- 
swer for.  There  has  been  no  want  of  help,  or  of  appliance, 
or  of  provision,  for  all  our  moral  and  spiritual  exigencies, 
on  the  part  of  God.  We  have  no  excuse  in  the  deficiency 
of  His  offers,  of  which,  if  we  do  not  avail  ourselves,  we 
are  the  authors  of  our  own  undoing,  and  the  blood  lieth 
upon  our  own  heads.  He  thus  vindicates  His  dealings 
with  Jerusalem  ;  and  similar  will  be  His  dealings  with  us, 
if  we  yield  either  a  perverse  return,  or  no  return  at  all, 
for  the  privileges  we  enjoy.  Our  candlestick,  too,  will  be 
removed ;  and  a  sad  judgment,  we  fear,  overhangs  Chris- 
tendom at  large,  and  our  own  land Verses  2  and  4  are 

notabilia. 

9-17. — Now  follows  the  denunciation  of  Israel  in  less 
figurative  terms — first  for  the  covetousness  of  those  who 
multiply  their  houses  and  their  fields,  in  counterpart  to 
which  their  houses  shall  be  desolated,  and  their  fields  be- 
come waste  and  unfiiiitful,  yielding  the  miserable  return  of 
less  than  was  planted  in  them. — Tlien  follows  another 
denunciation  on  a  distinct  set  of  transgressors — the  in- 
temperate and  riotous.  How  truly  descriptive  of  the 
votaries  of  dissipation  in  our  present  day — "  that  they  re- 
gard not  the  work  of  the  Lord,  nor  consider  the  operation 
of  His  hands'' — an  expression  this  which  makes  verse  12 
a  notabile.  Hence  the  captivity  of  Israel — a  judicial  in- 
fliction for  sin.  Hell  has  enlarged  itself  The  receptacle 
of  the  dead,  as  too  narrow  for  their  increasing  multitude, 
is  widened  for  their  accommodation.    All  classes  of  men 


264  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  v. 

shall  be  brought  prostrate ;  but  the  majesty  and  right- 
eousness of  God  shall  shine  forth,  and  be  testified  on  that 
day Interpreters  view  the  "  lambs"  of  verse  17  spirit- 
ually. When  the  enemies  of  the  Church  are  destroyed, 
i\i2  Church  itself,  and  children  of  God,  will  be  at  rest 
and  be  fed.  I  should  have  conceived  of  animals  feeding 
at  large,  and  strangers  making  entry  on  the  desolated 
country. 

18-80. — Wo  unto  them  that  make  a  laborious  busi- 
ness of  sinning — who  prosecute  it  as  the  system  and  main 
concern  of  their  lives,  and  are  even  vain  in  the  exhibi- 
tion of  their  audacities  and  follies,  bidding  defiance  to 

God Verse  20  is  a  notabile. — Heaven  defend  me  from 

this  wo !  Let  me  not  gloss  ovdr  what  is  evil,  nor  dis- 
parage what  is  good.  And  save  me  from  all  overweening 
conceit  of  myself.  There  are  men  who  glory  in  their 
shame — who  make  a  boast,  for  example,  of  their  drinking 
powers.  There  is  utter  recklessness  in  this ;  and  we  shall 
often  see,  in  the  ruin  of  principle,  that  dissipation  and 
dishonesty  go  together,  so  as  to  corrupt  even  their  social 
integrity,  and  make  them  corrupt  ministers  of  justice,  if 
their  station  be  on  the  judgment-seat.  This  is  a  species 
of  corruption  extremely  prevalent  in  these  days ;  hence 
the  anger  and  the  outstretched  hand  of  God  against  them  ; 
hence  the  visitation  upon  the  land  of  them  who  were  the 
angels  and  the  instruments  of  His  wrath — calling  upon 
nations  from  afar  to  spoil  and  chastise  His  own  people. 
It  is  a  powerfully  expressive  image,  to  hiss  unto  them 

that  they  may  come  speedily The  chapter  closes  with 

the  description  of  these  invaders.  They  shall  not  tarry, 
nor  will  fatigue  cause  them  to  lag  upon  the  Avay.  They 
will  not  strip  themselves  for  repose.     Their  weapons  are 


ISAIAH  VI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  0,35 

formidable ;  and  they  will  have  both  horses  and  chariots 
of  war.  They  will  have  all  the  rapacity,  and  force,  and 
skill  of  a  practised  predatory  warrior ;  and  desolation  and 
sorrow  will  overspread  the  land. 

September,  1846. 

Isaiah  vi. — This  is  an  important  theological  chapter, 
inasmuch  as  the  quotation  from  it  in  John  xii.  41,  identi- 
fies the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  with  Him  whom  the  prophet 
saw  sitting  upon  the  throne — even  Jehovah  Himself — 0 
may  I  learn  from  this  chapter  how  to  reverence  my  Savi- 
our as  thrice  holy  and  the  Lord  of  Hosts,  whose  glory  fills 
the  whole  earth.  The  prophet's  apprehension  would  have 
been  well-grounded,  had  it  been  God  out  of  Christ  whom 
he  saw  ;  but  it  was  God  in  Christ — nay,  Christ  Himself, 
whom  he  saw.  He  was  baptized  with  fire  by  a  live-coal 
from  the  altar  ;  for  not  only  must  our  guilt  be  removed, 
but  the  dross  of  our  corruption  must  be  burned  away. — 

Take  away  mine  iniquity,  and  purge  my  sins,  0  God 

The  objective  truth,  of  which  Isaiah  undertook  to  be  the 
messenger,  was  told  to  Israel ;  but  the  subjective  opera- 
tion necessary  for  their  being  saved  by  it  was  not  per- 
formed on  them.  Their  desolation  and  captivity  were 
the  results  of  their  continued  impenitence ;  yet  a  rem- 
nant was  left — the  good  and  holy  few — the  salt  of  the 
earth — the  substance  of  the  land. 

Isaiah  vil  1-11. — The  terror  of  the  Jews  at  the  inva- 
sion of  Syria  and  Israel  is  picturesquely  set  forth.  Though 
Ahaz  was  a  wicked  prince,  yet  God  encouraged  liim  in 

this  instance,  and  appeared  upon  his  side Rezin  and 

Pekah  are  compared  to  the  two  tails  of  smoking  fire- 
brands, whose  heat  would  soon  be  put  out.     It  comported 

VOL,  IIL  M 


2C6  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  yii. 

not  with  the  designs  of  God  that  these  two  invaders  should 
succeed.  Let  them  stay  at  home — ^let  them  be  satisfied 
with  their  own  capitals  and  their  own  territories,  nor 
think  of  possessing  JeiTisalem  and  Judah.  As  for  one  of 
them,  even  Israel,  it  will  soon  cease  to  be  a  nation. — For 
the  chronological  difficulty  of  sixty-three  years,  see  the 
Commentators. — Isaiah  winds  up  this  comfortable  assur- 
ance by  urging  faith  in  it,  and  threatening  that  if  they 
want  this,  they  will  not  prosper — ^they  will  have  no 
stability  in  the  land.  But  Grod  not  only  requires  our 
faith,  He  supplies  us  with  a  waiTant  for  it.  He  does 
not  ask  bricks  from  us  without  giving  us  straw:  He 
does  not  demand  belief  without  evidence.  And  so  He 
bids  Ahaz  specifv  the  kind  of  sign  or  evidence  he  would 
like. 

12-25. — Ahaz  refuses  to  ask  a  sign,  on  a  plausible  pre- 
tence, too.  Yet  Isaiah  seems  offended,  and  as  if  charges 
Ahaz  with  wilful  unbelief  and  indifference.  It  is  well 
remarked  that  Isaiah  in  verse  11  says  of  God  to  Aliaz 
— "  that  He  is  Thy  God  ;"  but  in  his  reply  speaks  of  Him 
only  as  my  God — ^the  prophet's  and  not  now  the  king's 
God.  And  he  further  proposes  a  sign — ^not  one  that  will 
be  available  for  working  belief  in  the  mind  of  Aliaz,  who 
seems  careless  in  the  matter,  but  highly  available  for 
the  general  encouragement  of  all  who  had  faith  in  God, 
and  trusted  Him  for  the  fulfilment  of  all  His  promises  and 

prophecies We  have  here  a  glorious  prediction  of  the 

Messiah.  (See  Matt.  i.  22,  23.)  What  is  said  of  Him  in 
verse  15  becomes  more  intelligible,  if  for  '^that^'  we  read 
"  when ;''  or,  though  miraculously  bom,  He  Avill  not  be 
miraculously  fed,  but  will  grow  up  and  be  maintained  as 
others  on  the  common  fare  and  produce  of  the  country. 


ISAIAH  vui.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  267 

. .  There  are  difficulties,  too,  in  the  interpretation  of  verse 
16. — Some  understand  that  the  child  here  spoken  of  is 
one  pointed  at  hj  Isaiah,  and  perhaps  one  of  his  own  sons ; 
others,  that  hefore  a  child  shall  know  how  to  choose  the 
good  and  refuse  the  evil — sooner  than  by  the  interval 
which  sepai*ateS  the  birth  of  a  child  from  the  dawn  of  its 
early  understanding — w411  the  land  be  forsaken  of  both 
her  kings.  This  does  not  nullify  the  illustrious  prophecy 
which  came  before  ;  but  is  rather  a  guarantee  for  the 
fulfilment  of  it.     But  the  prophet  does  not  leave  off  till 

he  pronounces  judgment,  too,  upon  Ahaz To  "  hiss  for 

the  fly  and  the  bee  from  afar''  is  extremely  poetical  and 
impressive.  The  invasions  of  Egypt  and  Assyria  will 
desolate  the  whole  land,  so  that  few  cattle  shall  be  left, 
and  they  will  have  the  whole  produce  to  fatten  on.  Much 
good  land  will  nm  into  briers  and  thorns.  Men  will  hunt 
with  arrows  and  bows  where  they  used  to  labour  with  the 
instruments  of  husbandry.  Uplands  taken  into  cultiva- 
tion, and  fenced  about  with  brier  and  thoni  hedges,  shall 
be  laid  open  ;  and  the  animals,  fearless  of  all  restraint  or 
obstruction,  shall  roam  at  large  over  them.     . 

Isaiah  vui.  1-8. — "  Maher-shalal-hash-baz''  signifies  "to 
hasten  the  spoil  and  the  prey'' — an  appropriate  title  for 
the  prophecy  which  relates  to  the  invasion  of  Assyria — 

the  rod,  for  the  time,  of  God's  anger A  fonner  son  of 

Isaiah  was  named  Shear-jashub,  w^hich  means  "  the  rem- 
nant shall  return.''  The  son  whom  his  wife  the  prophetess 
now  gave  unto  him  received  a  name  of  another  import, 
and  was  expressive  of  judgment.  He  predicts  that  the 
invasion  of  Assyria  should  take  place  ere  this  son  shall 
be  able  to  speak There  were  many  it  would  seem  ia 


268  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  viii. 

Judah  disaffected  to  their  own  government,  and  in  the 
interest  of  the  kings  of  Assyria  and  Damascus,  preferring 
them  to  their  own  more  quiet  and  domestic  monarchy.  He 
forewarns  them  of  the  destruction  imjDending  over  these 
their  objects  of  confidence  and  affection  ;  nay,  even  they 
in  Judah  would  experience  his  vengeance.  They  refused 
the  soft  waters  of  Shiloah,  and  would  be  visited  by  the 

strong  waters  of  Euphrates I  have  long  admired  the 

closing  cadence  of  verse  8 The  land  of  Judah,  where 

Christ  was  born,  is  the  land  of  Immanuel. 

9-22. — He  now  turns  him  to  the  invaders  from  afar, 
and  lets  them  know  that  their  present  designs  against 
Judah  will  be  overthrown — for  in  this  land  of  Immanuel 
God  is  with  us.  And  so  God  warns  the  prophet,  and  the 
people  through  him,  not  to  give  way  to  the  fear  of  these 
enemies,  not  to  join  in  a  confederacy  with  them,  nor  to 
be  afraid  of  their  confederacies  ;  but  to  fear  God  who 
would  effectually  defend  them,  and  be  a  sanctuaiy  to  them, 
while  an  offence  and  a  snare  to  those  who  were  on  the 
side  of  Assyria,  both  in  Judah  and  Israel.  How  strikingly 
analogous  to  this  were  the  days  of  our  Saviour  ? — (See  1 
Peter  ii.  8  ;  see  also  Matthew  xxi.  44.)  While  Isaiah  and 
the  tine  disciples  waited  upon  the  Lord  and  respected  His 
law  and  testimony — still  His  face  was  hidden  from  the 

nation  at  large  —  Clause  first  of  verse  18  is  a  notabile 

The  godly  were  stared  at  by  the  general  public,  and  were 
also  signs  or  a  standing  testimony  against  them.  They 
were  forbidden  to  seek  after  any  but  God — as  dead  idols 
or  di\iners  that  could  not  profit Verse  20,  an  illustri- 
ous notabile  of  far  more  extensive  application  than  its 
primary  one. — My  God,  let  Thy  law  and  testimony  be  my 
supreme  guides  both  for  doctrine  and  for  obedience.     The 


ISAIAH  IX.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  2G9 

conspirators  shall  meet  with  their  doom,  be  driven  to 
and  fro,  shall  look  all  ways  for  relief,  hut  in  vain. 

Isaiah  ix.  1-7. — The  distress  just  spoken  of  shall  not, 
however,  he  so  great  as  on  some  former  occasions.  The 
people  even  now  had  a  greater  light  of  vision  and  prophecy 
among  them  than  in  some  former  times ;  but  the  larger  ac- 
complishment of  this  took  place  in  the  days  of  our  Saviour. 
(See  Matthew  iv.  14-16.) ...  "  Not  increased  the  joy,''  is  un- 
derstood to  be  a  mistranslation.  The  suppression  of  the 
negative  harmonizes  the  passage.  And  the  deliverance 
spoken  of  in  verses  4  and  5,  though  a  temporal  one  there, 
has  respect  to  a  future  and  higher  deliverance :  "  For 
unto  us  a  child  is  bom,''  proceeding  to  one  of  the  noblest 
passages  and  prophecies  within  the  compass  of  the  sacred 
volume.  Wliat  an  example  of  the  expansion  that  so  often 
took  place  in  the  prophetic  mind,  brightening  onwards 
from  the  type  to  the  antitype,  from  the  primary  and  direct 
object  to  its  grander  counterpart  in  the  ulterior  and  full 
consummation  ?  The  government  is  upon  the  shoulders  of 
Christ :  He  is  the  Priest  upon  His  throne :  He  is  Wonder- 
ful— great  is  the  mystery  of  God  manifest  in  the  flesh :  He 
is  the  mighty  God ;  and  after  His  ascension,  He  as  God- 
man  received  all  power  in  heaven  and  earth :  He  is  one  with 
the  Father,  and  the  Father  of  the  new  creation — of  the 
Gospel  state — the  Alpha  as  well  as  the  Omega  of  the  re- 
generated world :  He  is  emphatically  the  Prince  of  Peace ; 
and  will  ever  be  adding  to  the  extent  of  His  kingdom — ■ 
the  stability  and  order  of  which  will  be  eternal.  The 
zeal  of  the  Lord  of  Hosts  is  a  guarantee  for  all  this  per- 
formance. It  is  a  zeal  for  my  salvation,  and  0  let  me 
respond  to  it. 


270  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isatah  x. 

8-21. — The  kingdom  of  Israel  had  been  smitten  of  the 
Lord,  but  not  humbled.  They  boasted  that  thej  would 
more  than  repair  all  the  loss  and  destiniction  which  had 
come  upon  them.      This  was  a  fresh   provocation   and 

called  for  a  hotter  vengeance The  adversaries  of  Rezin 

were  the  Assyrians,  whom  the  Syrians  themselves  the 
people  of  Rezin  joined,  and  so  made  the  confederacy 
against  Israel  all  the  more  formidable.  The  repetition  of 
His  anger  not  being  turned  away,  but  His  hand  being 
stretched  out  still,  is  awfully  solemnizing — ^like  the  knell 
of  another  and  another  visitation.  The  prophet  that 
teacheth  lies  is  placed  the  lowest,  and  basest  of  all  their 

society — causing  the  people  to  err  and  be  destroyed 

The  enemies  of  God  are  here,  as  in  other  places,  compared 
to  thorns  and  briers. — Civil  war  and  famine  are  threatened 
against  them ;  nay,  such  was  the  extremity  of  their  dis- 
tress, that  they  became  cannibals — devouring  even  their 
own  flesh,  or  that  of  their  nearest  kindred  ;  and  all  this 
because  they  turned  not  to  the  Lord  who  smote,  sought 
not  after  Him,  but  despised  his  chastening — nay,  were 
hardened  under  it. 

Isaiah  x.  1-11. — It  does  not  appear  whether  the  de- 
nunciation here  was  uttered  against  Israel  or  Judah — 

though  the  reason  and  principle  of  it  are  very  obvious 

"  Where  will  ye  leave  your  glory,''  intimates  that  it  should 
depart  from  them  beyond  recovery;  because  without 
God,  they  should  be  the  most  sunken  and  lowest  among 
the  prisoners,  or  the  first  to  fall,  and  so  undermost  among 
the  slain.  Either  captivity  or  the  sword  should  be  their 
lot  —  The  Assyrian  was  the  rod  or  instrument  of  God's 
wrath  ;  and  their  weapons  of  war,  the  staff  in  their  hand, 


ISAIAH  X.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  271 

did  wreak  His  indignation  on  His  enemies.  To  Judali 
more  than  to  Israel  miglit  be  applied  the  charge  of  being 
a  hypocritical  nation  ;  and  Assyria  utterly  subdued  Israel, 
ravaged  and  distressed  Judah.  (2  Kings  xviii.  10-13.) . . . 
Verse  7  is  a  notabile  ;  and  it  exemplifies  a  very  general 
law  in  the  administration  by  God  of  human  affairs, — He 
purposing  one  thing,  the  men  whom  He  employs  purpos- 
ing another.  How  often  is  the  good  of  society  educed 
from  the  play  of  individual  passions  and  interests — each 
man  aiming  after  a  personal  object  of  his  own,  without  re- 
ference to  the  great  and  general  result  contemplated  by 
the  Almighty  Governor  of  all !  How  often  is  this  evinced 
both  in  politics  and  political  economy ! — This  passage 
closes  with  the  boastings  of  the  king  of  Ass}Tia. 

12-2.3. — But  God  turns  to  him  who  was  the  instrument 
of  His  anger  against  Judah.  He  first  served  Himself  of 
the  king  of  Assyria,  and  after  his  purpose  was  done  with 
him.  He  brought  down  the  high  looks  of  the  boastful  and 
haughty  conqueror.  "Wliat  a  striking  lesson  of  humility 
to  us  all  who  are  but  tools  in  the  hand  of  God — shall  the 
axe  boast  itself  against  him  that  heweth  therewith  ?  How 
truly  the  prediction  that  God  should  burn  up  His  thorns 
and  briers  in  one  day,  was  fulfilled  in  the  destruction  of  the 
hosts  who  had  assembled  round  Jerusalem !  Yery  few 
were  left  of  that  great  army — though  such  were  the  pre- 
vious devastations  suffered  in  Judah,  that  comparatively 
but  few  of  them  were  left  also.  They  profited,  however, 
by  the  judgments  that  had  been  inflicted  on  their  nation ; 
and  no  more  staying  on  him  who  smote  them,  returned  to 
the  mighty  God  and  made  Him  their  dependence.  We 
have  already  seen  that  many  in  Judah,  disaffected  to  their 
own  government,  were  in  the  interest  of  their  enemies  and 


'272  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xi, 

invaders.  This  return  of  the  few  from  so  great  a  number 
is  adverted  to  bj  Paul  in  bis  argument  upon  election. 
(Romans  ix.  27.)  The  consumption  wbicb  God  bad  de- 
creed sball  overflow  tbe  land,  yet  be  in  measure  ;  and  will 
not  be  indiscriminate  but  in  righteousness — so  that  a 
select  number  will  be  spared.  This  part,  too,  enters  into 
Paul's  quotation — ^though,  as  made  from  the  Septuagint, 
it  reads  somewhat  differently. 

24-34. — And  so  the  prophet  in  the  name  of  the  Lord 
dissuades  them  from  being  afraid  of  the  Assyrian. — God's 
anger  against  Judah  would  cease,  and  turning  against  the 
Assyrian,  for  some  time  the  staff  or  instrument  of  His 
vengeance  would  expend  itself  on  their  destruction.  For 
the  destruction  of  Oreb  and  Zeeb,  see  Judges  vii. — It  was 
effected  miracidously  and  by  an  invisible  power — as  was 
likewise  the  destruction  of  the  Egyptians  in  the  Red  Sea. 
^See  also  Psalm  Ixxxiii.  11.) — And  so  the  Ass}Tian  march- 
ed proudly  through  the  land  of  Israel,  taking  possession 
of  many  places,  and  striking  terror  into  all  the  rest.  He 
then  made  up  to  Jerusalem,  and  spread  himself  in  array 
before  it.  But  here  the  Lord  inter]^)osed  and  laid  His 
arrest  upon  him.  The  Jews  should  be  delivered  because 
of  their  anointing,  because  of  their  anointed  and  good 
king  Hezekiah,  and  to  preserve  the  nation  till  Shiloh  the 
great  anointed  of  the  Lord  should  come.  Their  army  was 
thick  as  the  forests  of  Lebanon  ;  but  as  if  cut  do^vn  with 
iron  they  were  felled  to  the  ground ;  and  on  the  miracu- 
lous destruction  of  their  host  was  this  prophecy  signally 
fulfilled. 

Isaiah  xi. — Tlie  prophecy  now  points  clearly  to  Christ, 
to  whom  the  Spirit  without  measure  was  given — whose 


ISAIAH  XII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  073 

fniits  as  here  enumerated  are  chiefly  intellectual,  but 
blended  with  the  moral  in  the  remarkable  expression 
which  makes  verse  3  a  notabile — and  shall  make  him  of 
quick  understanding  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord.  And  He 
judged  not  according  to  the  appearance,  but  judged 
righteous  judgment.  (John  vii.  24.) — He  will  appear  for 
His  own,  the  meek  and  the  poor  in  spirit,  and  will  visit 
on  the  earth  its  wickedness,  that  He  might  establish 
over  it  the  reign  of  righteousness  and  truth.  These  will 
be  the  days  of  love  and  universal  peace,  when  the  very- 
animals  shall  cease  to  devour  each  other It  seems  a 

most  perplexing  law  that  of  animals  obviously  framed 
for  the  destruction  of  each  other ;  and  may  we  not  hope 
for  the  literal  fulfilment  of  such  a  revolution  as  is  set 
forth  in  these  verses  ?  This  regeneration  of  the  world 
is  obviously  conjoined  with  the  restoration  of  the  Jews; 
. . .  Verse  9  is  a  most  illustrious  notabile.  The  remnant  of 
Israel  will  be  conducted  back  to  their  own  land.  The 
Gentiles  will  help  on  their  return  ;  and  the  two  great 
divisions  of  Ephraim  and  Judah  will  again  be  brought 
into  one.  They  shall  take  possession  of  the  neighbouring 
countries,  and  extend  themselves  probably  to  Euphrates. 
God  will  remove  all  obstacles — as  He  did  when  He  dried 
up  the  Red  Sea.  He  made  then,  and  He  will  again  make 
a  highway  for  His  people. 

Isaiah  xii. — We  have  here  a  song  of  celebration.  If 
at  the  deliverance  from  Egypt  we  had  the  song  of  Moses, 
at  the  next  great  deliverance  we  shall  have  the  song  of 
the  Lamb. — My  God,  give  me  the  faith  and  the  spirit  that 
will  join  in  it.  Enable  me  to  say — Thou  wast  angry,  but 
it  is  now  turned  away,  and  I  am  comfoi-ted.     Let  me 

m2 


274  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xiii. 

trust  and  not  be  afraid.     Be  my  strength,  0  Lord,  my 

song  and  my  salvation Verse  3  is  a  most  illustrious 

notabile. — May  I  ever  dra^Y  out  of  tlie  fountain  that  is 
opened  in  the  house  of  Judah  for  sin  and  for  uncleanness 
— ^that  I  may  be  washed  both  from  guilt  and  pollution, 
and  that  living  waters  therefrom  may  minister  to  the 
health  of  my  soul — to  the  salvation,  the  acorrjpia  in  which 

the  health  and  well-being  of  my  spirit  lies What  a  lofty 

theme  for  gratulation  and  praise,  more  especially  from 
the  Jews  in  that  day — the  day  of  the  Jews'  establishment 
in  their  own  land — the  day  of  the  Church's  triumph  over 
all  her  enemies — the  day,  in  short,  that  ushers  in  the  mil- 
lennium. Then  will  indeed  be  materials  for  a  call  upon 
the  whole  earth — for  the  excellent  things  done  by  the 
Lord  shall  be  universally  kno■\^^l  in  it.  And  beside  this 
general,  there  will  be  a  special  call  to  join  in  these  lofty 
notes  of  praise  on  the  children  of  Israel — for  well  might 
the  inhabitants  of  Zion  shout  aloud  for  joy,  when  the 
Holy  One  of  Israel  is  in  the  midst  of  her. 

Isaiah  xiii.  1-11. — The  harmony  of  the  Bible  prophe- 
cies and  accounts  with  secular  history,  strongly  confirms 
the  truth  of  Scripture.    Of  these  prophecies  such  as  relate 

to  Babylon  are  among  the  most  striking ''Burden'' 

may  signiiy  the  matter  or  essence  or  subject  of  any  dis- 
course. As  when  the  Lord  put  a  word  in  Balaam's 
mouth,  (Numbers  xxiii.  5,)  and  he  took  it  up  (xs")  and 
spake.  The  burden  is  (mn)  what  is  thus  taken  up.  The 
takinsr  of  Babvlon  bv  Cvrus  at  the  head  of  his  Modes 
and  Persians  is  the  subject  of  this  prediction.  God's  sanc- 
tified ones  are  those  whom  He  had  appointed  and  set  apart 
for  this  seiwice.     Cyrus  was  pre-eminently  such.     (Isaiah 


ISAIAH  xiii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  075 

xlv.  1.)  The  destniction  of  Babvlon  was  by  men,  but 
from  God:  it  shall  come  as  a  destruction  from  the 
Almighty.  The  terrors  of  the  invaded  city  are  most  for- 
cibly depicted — We  have  in  verse  10  a  specimen  of 
the  symbolic  language  of  prophecy,  according  to  which 
the  powers  of  this  world  are  represented  by  the  sun  and 
moon  and  constellations  of  the  heavens.  It  was  indeed  a 
vengeance  on  the  arrogancy  and  haughtiness  of  the  proud 
and  terrible. 

12-22. — The  scarcity  of  men  consequent  on  their  ter- 
rible slaughter  is  here  set  forth.  The  heavens  and  the 
earth,  princes  and  people,  would  be  in  great  part  exter- 
minated; yet  some  would  escape  of  this  mixed  army 
from  among  the  various  countries  which  had  been  brought 
into  the  vast  dominions  of  Babylon.  Their  being  like 
sheep  that  no  man  congregates,  or  like  scattered  sheep, 
vividly  pourtrays  the  flight  and  dispersion  of  the  remnant 
of  this  mighty  host.  And  there  would  be  a  dreadful 
slaughter  along  the  route,  and  all  the  outrages  consequent 
on  the  sack  of  cities,  and  the  invasion  with  the  conquest 
of  provinces.  The  Medes  are  here  characterized  as  not 
caring  for  gold  ;  and  so  they  would  not  be  bought  off 
from  their  feU  purposes  of  extermination  by  any  ransom — 
marking  how  fell  and  fatal  to  the  conquered  their  victory 
should  be.  "We  cannot  imagine  a  more  eloquent  and 
picturesque  description  than  is  here  given  of  the  desola- 
tion of  Babylon,  brought  down  from  its  proud  excellency 
and  beauty,  and  converted  into  a  bare  and  frightful  wil- 
derness. There  is  nothing  in  Ossian,  or  in  any  of  our  his- 
torians and  poets,  that  can  at  all  rival  the  brief  and  im- 
pressive sketch  which  is  here  given — no  Arabian  pitching 
there,  and  their  houses  being  full  of  doleful  creatures,  and 


276  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xiv. 

dragons  in  their  pleasant  palaces.  And  wliat  a  verifica- 
tion does  the  fulfilment  of  this  prophecy  give  to  the  Book 
which  contains  it ! 

Isaiah  xiv.  1-8. — The  prophecy  returns  to  Israel — con- 
necting the  destruction  of  Babylon  with  the  deliverance 
of  God's  own  people.  That  strangers  should  be  joined 
with  them,  points  to  the  union  which  shall  take  place  be- 
tween Gentiles  and  Jews,  with  the  subserviency  more  or 
less  of  the  former  to  the  latter — at  one  time  helpful  to 
them,  and  glad  to  accompany  them  from  a  common  faith, 
'Zechariah  viii.  23 ;)  at  another,  their  subjects  and  cap- 
tives. There  is  much  of  these  fulfilments  still  in  reserve. 
The  proverb  or  parable  here  taken  up  is  one  of  the  finest 
imaginative  compositions  extant  in  any  language.  It 
seems  to  profess  itself  a  fiction,  though  representative  of 
substantial  tiTith.  The  humiliation  of  Babylon  as  an 
earthly  2:)0wer,  and  the  consequent  enlargement  and  peace 
of  the  nations,  are  of  a  literally  historical  character.  But 
the  reception  of  its  king  in  Hades  ;  and  what  is  figured 
to  be  done  and  spoken  there,  belong  more  strictly  to  the 
parable — ^like  those  of  our  Saviour,  given  not  as  true  nar- 
ratives in  themselves,  but  as  allegorical  representations 
for  the  enforcement  of  a  moral  or  some  great  lesson. 
And  never  have  the  vanity  of  ambition,  and  the  frailty  of 
the  highest  and  proudest  grandeur  been  more  impressively 
given.  There  is  a  vast  sublimity  in  the  description  of  this 
Plutonic  or  subterranean  scene. 

9-20. — "Heir'  is  ^^^52^  sepulchrum — in  Greek,  Hades — 
the  lower  parts  of  the  earth — not  Gehenna  or  the  place  of 
punishment.  Can  aught  be  imaged  more  impressive  than 
the  kings  of  the  nations,  raised  up  from  their  thrones  to 


ISAIAH  XIV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  277 

meet  the  ghost  of  the  king  of  Babylon  ?  or  aught  more 
pathetic  and  powerful  than  their  reception  address?  "What 
a  humiliating  contrast — and  with  what  effect  it  is  given, 
between  him  when  in  glory  as  Lucifer  son  of  the  morn- 
ing, and  him  in  his  grave  with  the  worais  spread  under 
him,  and  the  worms  covering  him  !  And  all  this  was  laid 
upon  him  as  a  punishment  for  his  arrogancy  and  high 
thoughts.  He  was  brought  down  to  Shaol,  (verse  15,)  "to 
the  sides  of  the  pit.''  Bernadotte,  after  the  battle  of 
Leipsic,  says  of  Napoleon  in  his  despatches — "  Is  this  the 
great  captain  who  made  the  nations  to  tremble?''  And 
Sir  Walter  Scott  in  his  description  of  the  proud  barons  of 
Roslin,  each  in  his  own  chapelle,  seems  to  have  caught  at 
least  the  poetic  inspiration  of  verse  18.  As  a  mere  literary 
composition,  the  passage  before  us  is  beyond  all  rivalry 

21-32. — We  now  come  to  the  literal  and  the  direct, 
when  the  denunciations  are  uttered  against  the  city  and 
empire  of  Babylon — given,  however,  with  the  same  grai)hic 
power  which  characterizes  the  whole  of  this  chapter,  when 
it  is  said  that  it  shall  become  "  a  possession  for  the  bittern, 
and  pools  of  water ;"  and  with  what  tremendous  energy  are 
we  told  that  God  "  ^vill  sweep  the  land  with  the  besom 
of  destruction  ! "  We  have  God's  unchangeable  purpose 
to  destroy  the  Assyrian  power,  and  remove  its  yoke  from 
the  land  of  Israel — from  "my  land"  and  "  my  mountains." 
His,  and  His  alone,  is  the  all-prevailing  hand  stretched  out 
upon  all  the  nations — in  contradistinction  to  the  boastful 
pretensions  of  the  king  of  Babylon,  who  would  have  ex- 
alted his  throne  above  the  stars  of  God,  and  set  himself 
down  on  the  mount  of  the  congregation,  (verse  13.)  But 
then  God  trod  him  under  foot,  and  caused  his  yoke  to  de- 
part from  off  his  people,  (verse  25.) At  verse  28  begins 


278  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xv. 

another  burden — another  subject  of  prophecy Pales- 

tina  is  Philistia.  The  Philistines  rejoiced  in  the  death 
of  Fzziah,  who  was  their  formidable  enemy  and  conqueror 
— (2  Chron.  xxvi.  6) — after  which  they  triumphed  in  turn 
over  Israel.  But  their  triumph  was  to  be  short-lived;  for 
out  of  the  same  royal  family  there  should  arise  one, 
Hezekiah  the  son  of  Ahaz,  who  would  deliver  his  land  and 
subjugate  its  foes,  and  more  especially  the  Philistines. 
(2  Kings  xviii.  8.)  Thus  did  the  Lord  appear  as  the  pre- 
server, and  will  be  the  restorer  of  Israel. 

Isaiah  xv. — It  is  not  said  who  they  are  that  were  to 
inflict  this  pretended  vengeance  upon  Moab.  One  might 
have  inferred  from  the  preceding  context  that  it  might 
have  been  Hezekiah,  whose  triumph  over  Philistia  had 
just  been  celebrated.  But  Henry  says,  and  it  is  the 
likelier  supposition,  that  Shalmaneser  extended  his  vic- 
tories to  Moab  at  the  time  of  his  expedition  against 
Samaria.  However  this  be,  the  desolation  of  Moab  is 
very  impressively  told — and  most  wasting  and  ruinous 
it  was.  In  the  enumeration  of  its  particulars,  one  is 
interested  when  meeting  with  the  same  names  of  towns 
which  occur  in  other  places  of  Scripture  when  Moab  is 
spoken  of  Tlie  most  interesting  of  these  names  is  Zoar, 
to  which  Lot  fled  for  refuge  on  the  destruction  of  Sodom 

and  Gomorrah Tlie  significancy  of  the  heifer  in  verse 

5  is  problematical.  Some  would  make  it  descriptive  of  the 
crying  like  a  heifer  lowing  for  its  calf ;  others  would  apply 
it  to  Moab,  fat  and  fertile — but  now  all  the  more  an  ob- 
ject for  pity  that  the  dread  visitation  has  come  upon  it 

The  being  "  laid  waste  and  brought  to  silence"  strikingly 
represent  the  desolation  as  the  eflect  of  the  devastation. 


ISAIAH  XVII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  279 

The  dispersion,  and  the  famine,  and  the  concealment,  or 
carrying  off  of  provisions,  are  forcibly  set  forth  as  the 
consequences  of  war. 

Isaiah  xvi. — The  first  verse  may  he  spiritualized  ;  hut 
its  more  obvious  meaning  is  an  injunction  on  the  Moah- 
ites  to  pay  their  customary  tribute  to  Judah — (See  2 
Kings  iii.  4,  5) — else  they  should  suffer  all  the  miseries  of 

a  conquered  people "  Making  thy  shadow  as  the  night/* 

if  interpreted  by  the  next  clause,  may  signify  a  shelter- 
ing of  the  oppressed  from  the  heat  of  persecution — per- 
haps fugitive  Jews — God's  outcasts.  Befriend  them,  and 
it  is  your  policy  so  to  do  ;  for  Grod  will  soon  destroy  their 
enemies,  as  He  did  most  signally  in  the  reign  of  Hezekiah. 
The  prediction  regarding  his  throne  expands  so  as  to 
suit  the  higher  and  more  enduring  throne  which  we  still 
look  for.  But  the  pride  of  the  Moabite  will  refuse  the 
counsel  now  given,  though  his  lies  will  not  avail  him. 
Therefore  their  punishment  is  sure — the  invading  captains 
will  strip  them  of  all  their  wide  spread  luxuriance.  They 
will  weary  themselves,  and  pray  in  vain  on  their  idola- 
trous high  places.  This  is  the  word  that  Grod  hath  given 
regarding  Moab  since  the  time  of  their  proud  hostility  to 
God's  people.  The  woes  foretold  should  take  place  in 
three  years. 

Isaiah  xvii. — The  prophet  turns  to  another  neighbour- 
ing state,  and  makes  it,  too,  the  subject  of  his  proj^hetic 
threatenings.     According  to  Robinson,  there  is  an  Aroer 

in  the  N.E.  by  Jordan But  Israel,  also,  is  included  in 

these  denunciations — it  having  been  alike  hostile  to 
Judah  with  Moab  and  Damascus.     The  country  shall  be 


280  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xvni. 

gleaned  of  its  people,  as  are  tlie  fields  in  harvest.  Yet  a 
remnant  shall  be  left,  as  is  set  forth  by  a  figure  not  infre- 
quent in  the  Scriptures.  And  it  shall  be  a  godly  rem- 
nant, sanctified  by  affliction. — My  God,  let  mine  eye  be 
ever  towards  Thee ;  and  to  Thee  may  I  have  respect  in 
all  my  ways. — Thus  it  will  be  with  the  chastened  Israelites, 
too,  at  the  end  of  the  present  Economy,  even  as  it  has  been 
in  former  days,  when  the  effect  of  the  discipline  laid  upon 
them  was  that  they  abjured  idols.  But  there  would  pre- 
viously be  great  desolation,  because  of  the  transgressions 
of  the  children  of  Israel.  It  is  because  they  had  forgotten 
God  that  their  seed-time  of  prosperity  and  hope  should 

be  followed  by  a  harvest  of  desperate  sorrow There 

seems  a  transition  to  another  subject  at  verse  12.  The 
denunciations  now  are  turned  to  the  more  distant  invaders 
of  Judah.  They  shall  come  like  a  torrent  in  its  strength ; 
but  they  shall  be  arrested  and  turned  back — chased  "  like 
a  rolling  thing  before  the  whirlwind.''  This  last  is  a  fine 
image.  By  the  destruction  of  the  Assyrian  host,  these 
spoilers  of  Judah,  these  troublers  at  the  evening-tide, 
were  not  when  morning  arose,  but  were  dead  corpses. 

Isaiah  xviii. — Horsley  (whom  I  read  long  ago)  gives  a 
most  impressive  commentary  on  this  chapter.  To  the 
best  of  my  recollection,  the  "  Wo''  is  "  Ho" — not  a  denun- 
ciation, but  a  call.  And  there  is  a  general  explanation  of 
Ethiopia,  which  enables  him  to  give  forth  Britain  as  the 
country  that  is  called  upon.  And  he  points  to  some 
great  future  service  of  ours  in  conducting  the  scattered 
of  Israel  back  again  to  their  own  land.  There  may  be 
a  miraculous  manifestation  at  that  time  from  heaven — ■ 
the  blowing  of  a  trumpet,  the  lifting  up  of  an  ensign,  in 


isAUH  XIX.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS  281 

behalf  of  a  nation  that  had  been  sadly  peeled  and  plucked 
and  plundered  of  its  own.  And  they  may  well  be  called 
a  nation  marvellous  and  ten'ible  from  the  beginning. — 
Meanwhile,  God  who,  Himself  undisturbed,  regulates  and 
presides  calmly  over  all  things,  will  conduct  this  process, 
just  as  He  g-uides  onward  the  processes  of  the  material 
world.  He  will  prune  away  all  that  is  corrupt,  and 
cast  it  out  for  destruction.  The  vine  He  brought  from 
Egypt  will  thus  be  brought  into  a  healthful  state,  and 
become  fit  for  being  replanted  in  its  own  land.  It  will 
then  be  a  present  unto  the  Lord — a  glorious  Church  with- 
out spot  or  wrinkling. — Hasten  this  blessed  consumma- 
tion, 0  God  ;  and  bring  Thy  people  again  unto  Zion .... 
One  of  the  most  striking  prophecies  in  the  Book. 

Isaiah  xix.  1-10. — It  makes  against  Horsley's  inter- 
pretation that  after  Ethiopia  comes  Egypt — the  former 
standing  between  the  latter  and  Damascus.  It  looks  as 
if  the  prophet  were  dealing  in  succession  with  all  the 
countries  around  Israel ;  though  Horsley's,  notwithstand- 
ing, may  prove  the  anterior  fulfilment  of  a  former  one 
that  has  long  gone  by What  a  picturesque  descrip- 
tion of  Egypt !  and  how  closely  does  the  representation 
here  given  of  it  bring  up  the  characteristic  peculiarities 
of  that  land — its  idols,  its  incantations,  its  irrigations, 
its  river,  the  papjTus  on  its  banks,  its  manufactures,  its 
ponds,  and  tanks  of  water  ! ...  Its  "  brooks  of  defence'^ 
Tvere  runnels  of  water — mounded,  lest  they  should  over- 
floAv ;  and  whether  they  were  dra^^al  around  cities,  or 
were  carried  in  furrows  to  every  field,  they  would  con- 
tribute greatly  to  the  strength  of  the  country.  But 
whether  overrun  by  invaders  or  not,  the  resources  of  God 


282  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xx. 

for  the  exercise  of  discipline  are  infinite.  He  could 
raise  a  cruel  lord — a  tyrant  Pharaoli — amongst  them- 
selves, who  might  be  to  them  what  a  former  Pharaoh  was 
to  the  Israelites.  Civil  war  and  famine — the  result  of  a 
failure  in  the  Nile — ^were  to  be  superadded  to  their  other 
calamities. 

11-25. — And  as  He  made  the  water  of  that  river  in 
which  thev  gloried  to  fail,  so  did  He  make  the  wisdom  of 
their  counsellors,  whereof  they  were  so  proud,  to  fail  also. 
Egypt  was  proverbial  for  its  wisdom  ;  but  He,  the  Lord  of 
the  mental  as  well  as  the  material,  could  as  easily  mingle 
a  per^^erse  spirit  therewith,  as  He  could  taint  or  dry  up 
their  mighty  river.  Their  manufactures  should  be  extin- 
guished from  the  want  of  raw  material.  And  Judah 
should  be  a  terror  unto  Egyi^t  in  that  day ;  but  the  de- 
scription is  such  as  points  to  a  future  day.  There  shall 
be  a  remnant  in  Egyj^t,  who  will  adopt  the  words  and 
doctrines  of  the  true  faith.  Of  the  five  cities  of  such 
converts,  one  shall  have  undergone  so  complete  a  transi- 
tion that,  though  for  its  abundant  idolatry  and  consequent 
calamitous  visitation,  it  should  be  called  the  city  of  de- 
struction— ^yet  even  it  should  turn  unto  the  Lord.  These 
converts  will  be  oppressed  and  persecuted,  but  will  receive 
help,  and  shall  prevail.  For  the  Lord  will  smite  Egypt, 
to  the  overthrow  of  its  antichrist ian  power,  and  the  cause 
of  tiiith  shall  become  triumphant  there,  as  also  in  Assy- 
ria, on  the  other  side  of  Canaan.  Israel,  then  in  posses- 
sion of  its  own  land,  will  be  a  blessing  to  both — a  blessing 
in  the  midst  of  them.  Wliat  a  deeply  interesting  disclo- 
sure of  things  to  come  ! 

Isaiah  xx. — Ashdod  was  a  city  of  the  Philistines,  but 


ISAIAH  XXI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  283 

perliaps  in  the  possession  of  tlie  king  of  Judali  at  the  time 
of  this  prophecy.  Commentators  are  not  agreed  as  to  the 
literal  fulfilment  of  the  signs  given  forth  hy  the  prophets, 
in  obedience  to  God's  appointment.  Some  would  make 
Isaiah  walk  barefoot  only  once,  or  perhaps  for  three  days, 
to  signify  the  three  years  when  his  prediction  should  be 
fulfilled — enough,  it  is  thought,  if  He  did  the  thing  which 
was  to  represent  what  He  foretold,  and  then  declared  ver- 
bally when  it  should  happen.  The  object  of  the  prophecy 
seems  to  wean  those  to  whom  it  was  addressed  from  their 
confidence  in  Egypt — a  habit  for  which  the  Jews  are  often 
rebuked  and  chastised  by  Him  in  whom  all  their  confidence 
should  be  laid.  This  isle  may  be  Philistia  or  Judea.  The 
contiguity  of  the  Mediterranean  justifies  this  appellation. 
And  the  question  is — how  shall  we  escape,  if  either  Egypt 
or  Ethiopia — themselves  to  be  overthrown  and  put  to  shame 
— shall  be  our  expectation  ?  The  conjunction  of  Ethiopia 
here  with  Egypt  is  another  proof  of  the  18th  chapter 
having  had  some  near  and  literal  fulfilment. 

Isaiah  xxi. — The  extent  of  ovei-flowing  water  from  the 
Euphrates  caused  the  environs  of  Babylon  to  be  termed 
the  desert  of  the  sea.  There  was  also  a  great  proportion 
of  mountainous  land  inhabited  by  the  Medes  and  Persians, 
whence  they  issued  forth  on  Babylon  like  a  furious  south 
wind.  Babylon  would  fall  by  the  treachery  of  its  own 
people,  as  well  as  by  the  strength  of  its  plundering  foes. 
The  sighing  of  its  captives  and  prisoners  would  thenceforth 
cease ;  but  its  o^vn  doom  was  a  t enable  one.  The  prophet 
personates  its  terror — (verse  5) — describes,  in  the  form  of 
commanding,  what  the  prophet  only  predicts — the  se- 
curity of  the  Babylonians,  who  gave  themselves  up  to 


284  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xxii. 


festivitj,  yet  were  called  to  battle  during  the  time  of  it — ■ 
in  preparation  forwhicli  thej  anointed  tlie  shield,  that  the 
weapons  cast  at  them  might  slide  off,  instead  of  penetrat- 
ing them.  Watchmen  were  set  on  the  look-out,  and 
sounded  "  A  lion,''  as  an  understood  note  of  alarm.  The 
watchman  seems  to  intimate,  bj  stating  his  vigilance,  that 
his  first  discovery  was  the  first  and  earliest  appearance  of 
aught  approaching  to  Babylon.  The  second  party  whom 
he  observed — and  he  hearkened  diligently  for  information 
— made  known  to  him  the  fall  of  Babylon — an  intelligence 
which  the  prophet  specially  directs  to  the  people  of  Israel, 
who  were  the  Lord's  threshing,  and  the  com  of  His  floor. 
. . .  Dumah  is  Idumea,  and  its  burden  is  hard  to  be  under- 
stood. There  is  a  question  and  answer — the  former  per- 
haps about  the  tidings  of  this  adverse  time — the  latter 
perhaps  entreating  that  a  brief  period  would  intervene, 
and  then  the  consummation ;  and  that  if  the  questioner 
chose  to  know  more  particularly,  he  may  return  and  re- 
new his  inquiry  after  that  more  had  transpired There 

is  next  foretold  an  invasion  upon  Arabia,  so  that  its  in- 
habitants should  have  to  hide  themselves  in  the  forest ; 
and  their  services  would  be  called  for  aid  and  succour  to 

their  flying  countrymen "A   year,  according   to  the 

years  of  a  hireling,"  is  a  precisely  reckoned  year. 

Isaiah  xxii.  1-13. — Judea  is  the  valley  of  vision — the 
country  which  God  enlightened  through  the  seers  which 
He  sent  to  them.  The  city,  in  a  glow  with  prosperity 
and  pleasure,  had  an  arrest  laid  upon  its  gladness.  Many 
of  its  chiefs  were  apprehended,  and  bound  by  the  enemy ; 
and  many  died  of  hunger,  and  other  calamities,  beside 
those  of  the  battle.     And  so  the  prophet  laments  bitterly, 


ISAIAH  XXII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  285 

as  he  describes  tlie  invasion,  it  is  understood,  of  Senna- 
cherib. The  enemy  made  the  land  bare  of  its  defences ; 
and  Jerusalem  had  to  look  into  her  magazines,  and  pre- 
pare for  the  onset.  There  was  much  done  to  fortify  them- 
selves against  the  coming  assault ;  and  thej  tiTisted  in 
their  own  measures  of  defence  and  precaution ;  nay,  gave 
themselves  up  to  a  sort  of  infatuated  security,  or  at  least 
carelessness — feasting  to-day,  even  though  they  should  be 
slain  on  the  morrow.  There  was  an  utter  neglect  of  God 
in  all  this.  Never  were  a  people  more  called,  by  their 
past  sins  and  present  dangers,  to  feelings  of  alarm  and 
repentance  ;  instead  of  which  they  abandoned  themselves 
to  all  sorts  of  intemperance  and  riot. 

October,  1846. 
14-25. — And  because  of  this  God  holds  a  reckoning  with 
Israel — speaking  to  them  as  a  people  hopelessly  incorrig- 
ible, and  whose  sins  would  not  be  removed  from  the  land 

but  by  their  death The  names  of  Shebna  and  Eliakim 

occur  in  the  history  of  Hezekiah's  time.  (ch.  xxxvi.  3.) 
The  former  is  fastened  on  for  special  denunciation.  He 
had  built  a  stately  sepulchre,  and  thought  he  was  to  die 
in  Jerusalem ;  but  God  would  consign  him,  for  his  mis- 
deed, to  captivity  or  banishment  into  a  countiy  large 
enough  for  him  to  expatiate  in  as  a  wandering  outcast, 
where  he  should  die — and  then  be  succeeded  by  another, 
even  Eliakim,  who  is  spoken  of  in  such  terms  as  might 
well  lead  us  to  regard  him  as  a  type  of  Christ.  (See  Rev. 
iii.  7.)  He  had  the  custody  of  all  David's  treasures  and 
precious  things ;  and  his  office  should  be  for  life,  as  is 
signified  by  his  being  "  a  nail  in  a  sure  place."  He  would 
signalize  the  house  of  his  fathers,  and  be  a  glory  both  to 


286  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xxiii. 

those  from  whom  he  sprung,  and  to  those  who  should 
spring  from  him.  And  he  shall  have  full  charge  of  all 
their  concerns — his  authority  and  care  extending  from 
their  greatest  to  their  smallest Verse  25  seems  a  recur- 
rence to  Shebna,  who  thought  himself  secure ;  but  who, 
along  with  all  who  depended  upon  him,  should  be  cut  off 
and  fall. 

Isaiah  xxiii. — Tarshish  I  associate  with  Spain,  and 
Chittim  with  Europe,  called  here  the  isle,  to  reach  which 
we  have  the  sea  to  pass  over.  But  Tjre  is  more  pro- 
bably the  isle  here.  Sihor  is  the  river  of  Eg^^t.  The 
seed  and  the  harvest  suggest  a  corn-trade,  of  which  Tyre 
was  the  great  emporium,  and  is  well  characterized  as 
the  mart  or  market  of  the  world.  Zidon  was  the  parent 
of  Tyre,  here  called  the  sea,  or  strength  of  the  sea,  now 
bewailing  her  desolation,  for  that  her  oa\ti  posterity,  who 
sprung  in  common  from  Tyi'e  and  Zidon,  as  from  their 
mother  and  grandmother,  are  dwindled  away.  The  re- 
port of  the  niin  of  Tyre  would  cause  as  much  alarm  and 
sorrow  as  did  that  of  Egy^Dt.     The  description  of  Tyi'e  is 

picturesque Verse  8  is  a  notabile — applicable  to  the 

grandees  of  other  mercantile  cities.  The  merchant-city 
is  a  very  graphic  title,  TVTien  Nebuchadnezzar  laid  siege 
to  her,  the  bulk  of  the  people  made  off  by  sea.  Her  own 
feet  cari'ied  her  afar  off  to  dwell  in  other  places.  God 
was  the  prime  mover  of  this  great  desti-uction — and  for 
the  humiliation  of  proud  man — He  who  shook  the  king- 
doms ;  and  whose  servant  the  king  of  Babylon  virtually 
was.  Tyre  the  daughter  of  Zidon  by  descent  was  the 
daughter  of  Tarshish  by  dependence  and  close  connexion. 
It  is  the  wealth  of  customers  which  gives  birth  to  the 


ISAIAH  XXIV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  287 


wealth  of  traders.  The  Tyrians  passed  over  to  Europe, 
and  there  had  no  rest.  Such  of  them  as  made  not  their 
escape  in  this  way,  were  taken  captive  and  hurried  land- 
ward to  foreign  places.  Let  them  not  flatter  themselves 
in  their  impregnable  security.  Assyria  was  brought  low 
and  so  will  Tyre ;  but  not  yet  by  a  final  extermination. 
It  fell  with  Jerusalem,  and  seems  to  have  been  restored 
along  with  it  at  the  end  of  seventy  years.  It  shall  re- 
cover its  prosperity,  but  its  corruption  also.  Whatever 
fulfilment  the  prophecy  of  verse  18  had  in  literal  Tyre — 
we  doubt  not  that  an  antitypical  time  is  coming,  when 
mercantile  wealth  shall  be  largely  consecrated  to  the  ser- 
vice of  Christianity. 

Isaiah  xxiv.  1-12. — The  prophecy  now  changes  its  sub- 
ject. When  we  read  of  the  land,  we  think  of  the  land  of 
Israel — even  though  it  should  be  rendered  "  earth''  in  our 
translation.  But  verse  4,  where  the  "  world''  is  spoken 
of,  proves  a  more  extensive  signification  throughout  this 
chapter.  It  probably,  therefore,  relates  to  the  horror  and 
desolation  that  were  spread  abroad  far  and  wide  by  the 
Assyrians  or  Babylonians.  There  was  then  a  general  up- 
turning and  desolation  in  many  countries — under  which 
all  both  high  and  low  suffered — and  this  because  of  the 
sad  degeneracy  and  wickedness  into  which  they  had 
fallen.  The  wine  grows  sour  from  the  want  of  people  to 
drink ;  the  vine  languisheth  from  the  Avant  of  people  to 
cultivate ;  all  mirth  is  extinguished,  as  well  as  festivity. 
The  city  of  confusion  is  probably  Jerusalem — now  in  a 
state  of  uproar  and  anarchy,  or  rather  of  utter  suspension 
from  all  ordinary  pursuits  because  of  the  terror.  Decent 
and  regular  families  shut  themselves  up  in  their  houses, 


288  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xxv. 

while  riot  and  intemperance  went  on  in  the  streets — 
though  perhaps  only  on  the  part  of  invaders,  to  whom 
the  gate  was  now  open ;  and  by  whom  all  mirth  and  joy- 
on  the  part  of  the  inhabitants  were  put  to  flight. 

13-23. — A  remnant,  however,  will  be  left,  and  a  good 
remnant — and  this  not  confined  to  the  land  of  Israel,  but 
among  all  the  neighbouring  countries  that  had  been  laid 
waste — for  the  voice  of  praise  was  to  arise  from  the  sea 
and  from  the  isles,  and  this  too  to  God,  as  the  Lord  God 
of  Israel.  This  voice  was  to  arise  from  the  midst  of  cruel 
sufferings,  even  in  the  fires  wherewith  (verse  6)  the  houses 
were  burnt  by  their  invaders.  Such  songs  would  arise 
from  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth,  whither  many  of 
God's  peoj)le  had  been  carried,  and  these  would  celebrate 
the  triumphs  which  finally  the  righteous  should  enjoy. 
But  yet,  mixed  with  this  exaltation  on  the  part  of  a  few, 
there  is  distress  on  the  part  of  the  prophet  in  the  contem- 
plation of  the  general  calamity,  and  on  the  part  of  those 
who  shared  in  it.  There  would  be  sad  misusag^  of  the 
peoj^le — treacherous  dealings  with  them,  violence  and  de- 
ceit and  ambushments,  T\Tath  from  above,  utter  overturn- 
ings  from  beneath.  No  dignities  will  be  exempted  from 
this  awful  visitation.  Many  shall  be  shut  up  in  dungeons, 
and,  after  a  time  shall  be  visited — perhaps  for  their  ex- 
ecution, perhaps  for  mercy.  (Jeremiah  lii.  32.) ...  In  this 
prophecy  is  foreshown  a  visitation  upon  the  earth  still 
future — which  is  to  emerge  in  the  millennium — how  em- 
phatically told  in  this  place — when  the  Lord  shall  reign 
in  Jeinisalem,  and  before  His  ancients  gloriously, 

Isaiah  xxv. — This  song  may  have  been  called  forth  by 
the  literal  or  typical  deliverance  which  it  celebrates — 


ISAIAH  XXVI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  289 

but  suits  also  the  antitypical,  the  great  ultimate  deliver- 
ance and  enlargement  so  impressively  spoken  of  at  the 
end  of  the  last  chapter.  The  topics  are,  first,  the  desola- 
tions wrought  in  the  Grentile  world,  many  of  whose  cities 
should  be  brought  to  ruin,  and  their  palaces  (the  palaces 
of  strangers  and  foreigners  to  the  Holy  Land)  should  be 
annihilated.  The  proudest  and  powerfullest  of  nations 
would  stand  in  awe  because  of  this  and  give  gloiy  to  God, 
and  all  on  the  side  of  the  restored  Jews  and  their  Chris- 
tian allies.  Thej  shall  be  protected  from  the  loud  menace 
of  their  enemies,  even  as  the  interposing  cloud  protects 
from  the  heat.  The  flourishing  and  lofty  branches  of  their 
foes  shall  be  laid  prostrate.  In  Mount  Zion — now  the 
metropolis  of  the  Christian  world — shall  there  be  a  great 
spiritual  feast  for  all  people ;  and  more  especially  shall 
the  veil  of  carnality  and  unbelief  that  overspreads  the 
earth  be  destroyed,  and  in  Jerusalem  too  shall  there  be  a 
brightness,  like  a  light  going  forth  and  opening  the  eyes 

of  all  to  the  ti-uth  as  it  is  in  Jesus Verse  7,  a  most 

illustrious  notabile For  verse  8,  see  1  Corinthians  xv. 

54.  Can  this  be  that  in  the  millennium  there  will  be  no 
death  ?  Surely  they  who  partake  in  the  first  resurrection 
will  not  die  over  again  —  The  contrast  is  here  strikingly 
given  between  those  whom  He  befriends,  and  who  will 
honour  Him  as  the  Captain  of  their  salvation,  and  those 
enemies  of  Israel  whose  countries  He  will  tread  down, 
and  whose  works  He  will  destroy. 

Isaiah  xxvi.  1-10. — This  is  in  all  probability  a  millennial 
song.  Salvation  guarantees  protection  ;  and  a  confidence 
in  this  gives  a  sense  of  their  security  to  the  saved.  (See 
eh.  Ix.  18;  Zech.  ii.  5.)    The  redeemed  will  enter  this  New 

VOL,  III.  N 


290  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xxvi. 


Jerusalem Verse  3,  a  precious  notabile. — Let  my  mind 

be  ever  stayed  on  God.  Let  Him  be  the  strength  of  my 
heart  and  portion  for  evemiore.  Then  shall  I  bless  Him 
who  hath  showed  me  marvellous  kindness  in  a  strong  city. 
It  will  not  seem  out  of  keeping  that  salvation  should  be 
appointed  for  walls,  to  those  who  can  speak  of  God  as  their 
fortress  and  tower  and  rock  of  defence.  Contemporaneous 
with  the  establishment  of  this  city  of  the  saints  will  there 
be  the  demolition  of  many  proud  cities  and  empires  in  the 
world,  and  by  the  hand  too  of  the  poor  and  the  persecuted, 
whom  God  approving  of  as  upright  will  befriend  and 
give  answer  to  their  call.     Thou  knowest,  0  God,  that  the 

desire  of  my  soul  is  towards  Thee Verse  9,  last  clause, 

is  a  notabile.  Not  that  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth 
will  learn  righteousness — not  the  incorrigibly  vricked — 
for  they  will  not  learn,  will  not  recognise  the  hand  of  God, 
even  in  the  great  things  done  for  His  people  in  the  land 
of  Judea,  now  called  the  land  of  uprightness.  (See  Psalm 
cxliii.  10.)  Heaven  above,  as  well  as  earth  below  in  her 
millennial  days,  may  well  be  termed  the  land  of  upright- 
ness. 

11-21. — The  obstinate  enemies  of  God  do  not  see  His 
judgments  to  their  o^vn  conviction,  but  they  will  be  made 
to  see  them  to  their  o^Yn  utter  confusion  and  overthrow — 
for  the  fire  destined  for  God's  enemies  shall  devour  them. 
How  different  the  fortunes  of  His  own  people,  who  shall 

have  protection  and  peace,  and,  above  all,  grace Verses 

12  and  13  are  eminent  notabilia. — Give  me  the  humility,  0 
God,  that  will  refer  all  which  is  good  in  me  to  Thine  own 
workmanship.  "Work  in  me  all  my  working  and  works — 
that  I  may  renounce  the  mastery  of  all  my  evil  affections, 
and  own  Thee  as  my  alone  master,  which  by  Thee  only  I 


ISAIAH  XXVII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  291 

sliall  be  enabled  to  do.  Crucify  my  evil  afFections,  O 
Lord,  so  that  I  may  say  of  tbem  as  Israel  here  says  o 
their  usm-ping  tyrants,  that  they  are  dead.  And  God  did 
recall  them  then,  and  will  again  recall  them  from  their 
captivity.  They  will  turn  in  prayer  to  God — helpless  and 
agonized  as  a  travailing  woman  in  her  extremity.  But 
the  relief  may  not  be  immediate  :  there  must  be  a  wait- 
ing as  well  as  praying.  It  will  take  a  time,  even  after 
they  are  set  upon  enlargement,  ere  the  deliverance  can  be 
wrought,  and  their  enemies  have  fallen.  But  it  will  come 
at  length,  and  come  gloriously.  Then  will  there  be  the 
first  resurrection.  But  amid  the  portents  and  throes  of 
the  world's  regeneration,  there  will  be  a  dread  reckoning 
and  vengeance  upon  the  nations — a  season  of  discharge 
from  heaven  upon  earth,  during  which  the  people  are 
called  upon  to  hide  themselves  till  it  shall  be  overpast.  All 
this  bespeaks  the  commencement  of  the  millennium. 

Isaiah  xxvii. — The  works  of  the  devil  will  at  length  be 
destroyed,  and  of  all  his  agents,  whether  they  be  powers 
on  earth  or  powers  in  hell.  But  God  will  protect  and 
fertilize  His  Church  to  be  gathered  out  of  all  nations — 
and  this  by  means  of  a  free  gospel,  with  its  generous 
assurances  and  calls Verses  4  and  5  form  a  most  illus- 
trious notabile — implying  as  they  do  that  God  has  no 
pleasure  in  the  death  or  destruction  of  His  creatures,  but 
rather  that  they  should  take  hold  of  His  strength,  and  be 
saved.  The  prophecy  seems  to  point  at  Israel  in  its  future 
state  of  restoration,  when  it  shall  fill  the  world  with  fruit, 
and  along  with  its  establishment  in  its  own  land,  the  ful- 
ness of  the  Gentiles  shall  come  in.  For  He  chastises  His 
people,  not  to  their  destruction — but  in  measure  for  their 


292  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READLNGS.         isaiah  xxvni. 

discipline  and  reformation — ^tempering  the  severity  of  His 
inflictions,  or  "  staving  His  rough  Avind  in  the  day  of  the 
east  wind/'  The  whole  design  and  effect  of  His  dealings 
with  Israel  is  at  length  to  take  away  their  sin — so  as  that 
they  shall  destroy  the  altars  and  groves,  and  images  of 

their  idolatry Perhaps  the  defenced  city  of  verse  10  was 

Babylon,  whose  utter  extirpation  and  the  reason  of  it  are 
intimated  in  verse  11. — Then  God  did  shake  off,  as  wheat 
from  the  chaff,  many  Israelites  who  returned  and  rebuilt 
their  city — the  emblem  of  their  future  return  to  their  own 
land — a  piecemeal  return  it  may  be^  and  that  too  in  obe- 
dience to  a  call  which  will  at  once  gather  the  outcasts  of 
Israel,  and  bring  aU  who  are  Israelites  indeed,  whether 
Jews  or  Gentiles,  within  the  pale  of  the  Millennial  Church. 

Isaiah  xxviii.  1-13. — Those  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel 
were  pre-eminent  for  pride  and  luxuiy,  and  their  capital, 
Samaria,  overlooked  the  loveliest  landscapes  of  Palestine. 
But  an  instrument  of  vengeance  was  preparing,  even  the 
king  of  Assyiia,  who  by  strength  of  hand  should  take  pos- 
session and  destroy — and  Israel  should  be  devoured,  as 
precocious  fruit  is,  the  moment  it  is  plucked.  But  after 
these  desolations  there  will  be  a  sur^dving  remnant,  most 
of  whom  perhaps  wiU  escape  to  the  still  subsisting  king- 
dom of  Judah.  God  will  be  the  gloiy  of  all  such,  and  give 
judgment  to  their  inilers,  and  strength  to  their  wamors,  for 
turning  the  battle  to  the  gates  of  their  enemies.  But  still 
there  will  be  a  strong  and  lingering  corruption  amongst 
them,  and  more  especially  a  low  and  loathsome  dissipation 
even  among  their  high  dignitaries.  But  when  once  there 
is  the  habit  and  the  inveteracy  of  evil,  it  is  a  sluggish  and 
unhopeful  task  to  reclaim  it.    Begin  early  with  education, 


ISAIAH  XXVIII.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  293 

and  give  forth  its  lessons  assiduously. — Verse  10  is  quite  a 
notabile. — But  as  they  rejected  the  plain  teaching  of  Grod's 
own  prophets,  they  were  punished  by  the  visitation  of  an  ob- 
scure, cabalistic,  and  erroneous  teaching,  even  till  the  period 
of  their  ruin  and  captivity  at  the  second  destruction  of  Je- 
rusalem. He  had  pointed  out  the  way  to  prosperity  and 
rest,  but  without  effect,  and  their  fall  was  the  consequence. 
14-29. — They  who  make  lies  their  refuge,  nourish  a 
false  security — as  if  death  and  hell  were  at  peace  with 
them,  and  would  let  them  alone.  There  is  a  sure  way 
and  foundation  of  peace — a  rock  on  which  all  may  lean, 
but  on  which  they  who  stumble  shall  fall,  or  if  falling 
upon  them,  it  will  grind  them  to  powder The  applica- 
tion of  verse  16  to  Christ  is  undoubted.  (1  Peter  ii.  6-8.) 
But  He — the  Saviour  of  them  who  will — is  the  Judge  of 
them  who  wiU  not ;  and  on  the  strict  and  rigorous  appli- 
cation of  judgment,  will  it  be  found  that  from  death  and 
hell  there  is  no  exemption  for  them.  The  gospel  shall  be 
a  sign  of  their  coming  destruction  to  all  who  oppose  it. 
Its  daily  testimony,  rejected  as  it  is  by  our  secure  men  of 
the  world,  who  nauseate  the  very  sound  of  it,  will  but 

aggravate  their  doom Verse  20  is  a  notabile  ;   and  is 

applied  to  our  o^vn  righteousness,  and  its  shortness  and 
insufficiency  when  compared  with  the  ample  righteousness 
of  Christ ;  but  on  all  who  trust  in  themselves  and  neglect 
the  great  salvation,  will  God  execute  His  strange  work  of 
judgment.  And  so  applying  all  this  to  the  scornful  men 
of  verse  14,  the  prophet  bids  them  cease  from  their  mock- 
eries, else  God  will  arise  in  His  might,  and  do  against 
them  what  He  did  for  them  and  against  the  Philistines 
and  Canaanites  in  former  days.  (2  Sam.  v.  20 ;  Josh,  x.) 
We  doubt  not  that  although  this  passage  be  pre-eminently. 


5294  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xxix. 

applicable  to  Christ,  it  had  a  nearer  and  more  literal  ful- 
filment soon  after  the  deliver}^  of  this  prediction. — Let 
me,  0  God,  try  the  foundation  Thou  hast  laid  in  Zion,  and 
I  shall  find  it  sure.    Let  me  not  be  impatient,  but  quietly 

wait,  and  I  shall  not  be  ashamed The  concluding  verses 

tell  us  of  the  subserviency  of  means  to  ends,  and  that  the 
instruments  of  any  given  work  should  be  appropriate  to 
that  work.  This  is  carefully  observed  by  the  husband- 
man, into  whom  God  hath  put  the  wisdom  for  planning 
and  proceeding  in  this  way.  How  much  more  shall  we 
look  for  such  wisdom  and  such  work  to  God  himself,  from 
whom  are  derived  to  His  own  creatures  all  the  skill  and 
strength  which  belong  to  them. 

Isaiah  xxix.  1-8. — Ariel  is  determined  to  be  Jerusalem, 
by  its  being  the  city  where  David  dwelt — signifying  the 
Sion  of  God.  Though  they  should  go  on  with  their  ritual 
observ^ances  from  year  to  year,  yet  they  are  here  told  that 
this  will  not  propitiate  Him  who  loves  obedience  more 
than  the  fat  of  lambs.  Their  city  should  be  besieged 
and  taken ;  and  themselves  brought  low,  so  as  to  speak 
the  language  either  of  prostrate  suppliants,  or  of  men 
wounded  and  moaning  towards  death.  But  this  prophecy 
seems  to  point  at  the  attempt  of  Sennacherib,  rather 
than  at  the  conquest  and  capture  by  Nebuchadnezzar; 
for  though  on  the  former  occasion  they  were  sadly  terri- 
fied and  brought  low,  so  as  to  speak  in  whispers  and  with 
great  feaifulness,  yet  they  were  delivered  from  the  mul- 
titude of  their  strangers — the  mighty  host  of  their  inva- 
ders, by  their  instantaneous  disappearance,  from  death, 
and  partly  it  may  be  from  dispersion.  So  that  though 
Jerusalem  was  then  compassed  about  with  menacing  de- 


ISAIAH  xxrx.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  095 


monstrations,  "both  from  her  enemies  and  perhaps  from 
the  elements  of  nature,  yet  were  these  enemies  made  at 
that  time  to  pass  away  from  her  as  a  dream  of  the  night 
— that  memorable  night  on  which  the  Assyrians  luxu- 
I'iated  in  the  visionary  hope  of  a  rich  prey  in  the  morn- 
ing ;  but  all  was  suddenly  arrested  by  a  miraculous  visi- 
tation from  on  high. 

9-24. — Verses  9-12  form  to  me  an  illustrious  notabile, 
and  on  which  I  preached  my  first  sermon  in  St.  John  s, 
Glasgow — strikingly  illustrative  of  nature's  blindness  and 
infatuation  among  all  the  classes  of  men. — Tlien  follows 
what  has  been  signalized  by  a  quotation  from  the  New 
Testament. — 0  that  our  country  may  be  preserved  from 
the  wisdom  of  such  rulers  as  repudiate  all  sacredness  from 
their  systems  of  policy  and  legislation  !  They  would  sub- 
vert all,  and  take  a  way  of  their  own — the  reverse  of  God's 
way,  nay  as  far  from  it  as  possible.  But  they  the  creature, 
shall  not  prevail  against  Him  the  Creator,  any  more  than 
the  clay  against  the  potter.  God  will  turn  the  fertility 
into  baiTenness,  and  the  barrenness  into  fertility.  But 
the  changes  announced  towards  the  close  are  all  on  the 
side  of  prosperity  and  enlargement,  when  ears  shall  be 
unstopped,  and  eyes  be  opened,  and  the  meek  shall  be 
raised  to  preferment,  and  the  poor  shall  rejoice — all  which 
shall  receive  their  highest  fulfilment  in  the  illumination 
and  deliverance  of  God's  elect  from  their  enemies  and  op- 
pressors —  "To  make  a  man  an  ofiender  for  a  word"  is  a 
memorabile.  We  have  no  doubt  that  the  practices  of  the 
wicked  and  powerful  against  the  just  here  described,  were 
cuiTent  in  these  days,  and  will  be  cun-ent  stilL  But  these 
shall  be  overthrown ;  and  when  Israel  shall  at  length  see 
the  converts  of  his  own  nation,  the  workmanship  of  tho 


296  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  xsaiah  xxx. 


grace  of  God,  tliere  will  be  a  general  turning,  for  tlie  first 
leaven  will  leaven  tlie  wliole  lump,  and  tliere  shall  be  a 
national  obedience  to  tlie  faitli. 

Isaiah  xxx.  1-11. — The  expressions  in  the  first  verse 
may  be  well  applied  to  the  whole  tendency  of  man  to 
walk  in  the  counsel  of  his  own  heart,  and  to  seek  for 
shelter  in  some  imagined  security  of  his  own,  but  not  re- 
vealed to  him  by  God.  The  special  occasion  of  the  pro- 
phecy before  us  was  the  rebellious  act  of  Israel  in  seeking 

Egypt  for  their  refuge It  is  interesting  to  mark  the 

good  keeping  here  of  the  geogmphical  names  that  occur. 
But  the  Jews  would  be  ashamed  of  their  confidence  in  a 
people  that  were  not  to  profit  them.  They  carried  their 
riches  on  the  backs  of  horses,  these  beasts  from  Eg}^t, 
through  the  fearful  wilderness ;  but  whether  for  the  safety 
of  their  goods,  or  therewith  to  bribe  the  Eg^^tians,  they 

should  miserably  fail  in  their  object What  a  noble  nota- 

)ile  is  the  last  clause  of  verse  7 ! — My  God,  let  me  profit 
)j  and  apply  it.  Forgive  my  restless  and  gnawing  anxie- 
ties ;  let  me  be  still  and  know  that  Thou  art  God The 

■'speak  unto  us  smooth  things''  is  also  a  most  precious 
aotabile,  and  brought  here  to  bear  on  the  Israelites  who 
ejected  the  counsel  of  Isaiah  because  it  was  not  to  their 
Avn  mind. 

12-19. — Now  follows  the  denunciation  of  the  prophet 
jn  this  perversity.  By  a  most  significant  image,  he  tells 
them  of  the  utter  niin  in  which  their  false  confidence 
vould  land  them —  Verse  15  is  a  most  illustrious  nota- 
oile. — My  God,  give  me  the  rest  of  quietness  and  confi- 
dence, into  which  may  I  labour  to  enter.  But  their  trust 
vras  in  horses,  on  which  they  fled,  but  did  not  conquer  or 


ISAIAH  XXX.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  097 

pursue.  They  should  be  so  thinned  by  slaughter,  that 
only  one  here  and  there  would  be  left  like  a  solitary 
ensign.  These  perhaps  signify  the  remnant  to  whom  the 
Lord  should  be  gracious ;  but  He  must  first  be  exalted 
as  a  God  of  judgment  on  the  wicked,  that  He  may  not 
be  misconceived  of — the  very  principle  of  an  atonement, 
which  was  rendered  that  mercy  and  truth  might  meet 
together,  and  God  evince  Himself  to  be  at  once  a  just  God 
and  a  Saviour. — 0  my  God,  let  me  wait  on  Thee,  who 

Thyself  waiteth  to  be  gracious There  may  have  been 

some  deliverance  now  past  predicted  here ;  but  to  be 
adequately  fulfilled,  there  must  be  some  great  antitypical 
deliverance  still  to  come.  Does  it  not  point  at  the  final 
restoration  of  the  Jews  to  their  own  land  ? 

20-33. — The  "water  of  afiliction''  is  a  memorable  phrase^ 
as  is  also  the  "  eye  seeing  our  teachers.''  And  verse  21  is 
a  precious  notabile. — My  God,  let  me  be  ever  asking  coun- 
sel of  Thee,  and  ever  obtain  the  reply  of  this  being  the 
way.  These  promises  of  spiritual  and  temporal  blessings 
have  never  yet  been  to  the  full  realized.  The  day  of  the 
great  slaughter  may  have  been  that  of  the  destruction  of 
the  Assyrian  army ;  but  we  read  in  the  Book  of  Revela- 
tion of  another  tremendous  catastrophe,  in  s^Tichrony  with 
the  establishment  of  a  glorious,  and  we  think  the  millen- 
nial economy  in  our  world — the  day  of  Armageddon,  to 
which,  and  its  accompaniments,  the  language  even  of  our 
present  prophecy  seems  applicable,  when  there  may  be 
physical,  as  well  as  moral  and  spiritual  enlargements  — 
The  "  stream  which  should  reach  to  the  midst  of  the  neck/' 
is  made  to  signify  a  sweeping  destruction,  that  would 
carry  off  the  whole  multitude  of  the  Assyrians,  while  it 
left  their  head  at  that  time  untouched — he  having  escaped, 

N  2 


098  DAILY  SCRirTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xxxr. 

at  least  for  this  turn ;  though  afterwards  we  read — slain 

in  the  house  of  Nisroch The  ''  sifting  of  the  nations  with 

the  sieve  of  vanity''  is  pre-eminently  applicahle  to  the 
period  when  the  little  stone  shall  become  a  great  mountain, 
and  fill  the  whole  earth,  on  the  iniins  of  its  present  eco- 
nomy   The  bridle,  causing  the  enemies  of  God's  people 

to  err,  might  be  some  necessity  which  draws  them  on  to 
their  ruin — while  contemporaneous  with  this  there  will  be 
joy  and  triumph  to  the  righteous.  The  two  dispensations 
of  Avrath  and  overthrow  upon  the  one  party,  of  victory 
and  blessing  to  the  other,  are  commingled  in  these  closing 
verses.  The  rod  of  the  Assyrian  will  be  overmatched  by 
the  grounded  staff  in  the  hand  of  God  ;  and  the  Tophet 
which  is  ordained  for  him,  strikingly  symbolizes  that  lake 
of  fire  and  brimstone,  into  which  the  impenitent  shall  be 
everlastingly  thrown. 

Isaiah  xxxl — We  do  not  imagine  that  these  successive 
prophecies  of  Isaiah  are  aiTanged  in  the  chronological 

order  of  their  fulfilment The  confidence  of  those  who 

trust  in  an  arm  of  flesh  is  here  rebuked — a  lesson  appli- 
cable to  all  times.  The  Lord,  in  whom  they  refuse  to  put 
their  trust,  is  nevertheless  mighty  to  destroy  as  well  as  to 
save.  It  is  His  frequent  complaint  against  Israel — that 
they  leaned  upon  Egypt.  And  He  here  calls  upon  them 
to  transfer  their  dependence  to  Himself,  who  alone  is 
strong  to  deliver  and  powerful  to  save — promising,  at  the 
same  time,  that  He  will  appear  for  Jerusalem,  would  they 
only  turn  to  Him  from  whom  they  had  so  deeply  re- 
volted. Upon  their  doing  this,  and  casting  away  their 
idols,  a  signal  overthrow  and  discomfiture  will  be  laid 
upon  the  whole  host  of  their  invaders The  prophecy 


ISAIAH  xxxix.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS. 


290 


seems  quite  suited  to  the  achievement  of  the  Angel  upon 
the  multitude  of  besiegers  under  Sennacherib.  Thej  were 
slain,  but  not  with  the  sword ;  and  yet  many  fled  in  the 
terror  of  that  invisible  sword  or  agency,  by  which  so  fell 
a  destruction  had  been  accomplished. 

Isaiah  xxxii.  l-8.-There  is  much  here  that  bears  an 
undoubted  application  to  Christ,  and  to  those  days  when 
the  kmgdoms  of  the  earth  shall  become  His  kingdoms .... 

What  an  exceeding  precious  notabile  is  verse  2 ! My 

God,  I  would  flee  to  Thy  Son,  who  at  the  same  time  is  the 
Son  of  man.    May  I  find  Him  to  be  not  only  a  covert  and 
a  hidmg-place,  but  also  a  fountain— that  as  rivers  of  water 
in  a  dry  place,  the  Holy  Spirit,  even  living  water,  may 
flow  plentifully  and  refreshingly  on  this  barren  soul,  in  a 
state  of  hebetude  though  it  be  to  the  things  of  God  and 
a  spiritual  world.     In  the  time  predicted  here  God  will 
lift  ofi"  the  covering  from  the  spiritual  eye-sight  of  all 
nations.     Instead  of  our  own  hasty  conclusions,  we  shall 
have  the  manifestations  of  God^s  own  light,  and  will  be 
able  to  utter  plainly  and  powerfully  to  the  consciences  of 
those  around  us ;  and  there  will  be  then  no  misjudgment 
of  men.     The  laws,  and  practices,  and  connivances,   or 
conventionalities  of  trade,  will  not  be  suffered  to  disguise 
the  selfishness  of  men.    True  liberality  will  be  recognised, 
and  stand  firm,  both  in  its  own  genuineness  and  in  the 
recognitions  of  a   discerning  neighbourhood.      He  that 
watereth  shall  be  watered  himself;  and  he  will  be  counted 
worthy  to  stand  before  the  Son  of  man,  and  obtain  the 
recompense  of  a  good  and  faithful  servant ...  ."Deeply 
revolted,''  in  the  last  chapter— a  memorable  expression, 
and  how  applicable  to  our  state  with  God.     Recall  me,' 


300  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        isaiah  xxxiij. 

Almiglity  Fatlier,  from  this  obstinate  alienation — the  ra- 
dical disease  of  our  fallen  nature. 

9-20. — God  now  addresses  the  two  classes,  who  had  just 
been  contrasted  the  one  with  the  other.  And  first  the 
careless  and  luxurious  ungodlv,  who  are  threatened  with 
the  loss  of  their  wealth,  and  of  all  its  regahng  pleasures. 
...  To  "  lament  for  the  teats ''  would  signify,  according  to 
some,  to  lament  the  loss  of  that  field  produce  which  the 
dairy  furnishes  ;  others  would  have  it  to  mean  the  wo  that 
should  befall  the  women  who  give  suck  in  those  days. 
Briers  and  thorns  should  spring  up  in  their  desolated  lands ; 
and  more  expressive  still  of  the  i-uin — the  wild  beasts 
should  expatiate  at  their  pleasure,  and  the  land  become 
"a  joy  of  wild  asses."  But,  as  usual,  there  is  a  residue, 
who  at  leng-th,  and  in  God's  good  time,  shall  present  the 
bright  side  of  the  picture — on  whom  God  shall  pour  His 
Spirit  from  on  high,  causing  all  the  blessed  fruits  of  the 
vSpirit  to  abound  in  the  midst  of  us.  Peace  and  righteous- 
ness will  meet  together ;  and  the  blessed  effect  will  be 
quietness  and  assurance  for  ever.  This  last  is  truly  a  most 
illustrious  notabile,  (verse  18,)  and  the  habitations  of  the 
good  shall  be  secure,  even  when  tempest  and  terror  are 
all  around  them.  The  city  shall  be  sheltered  and  safe ; 
and  the  liberal  shall  be  abundantly  rewarded — blessed  in 
all  that  they  put  their  hands  to. 

Isaiah  xxxiii.  1-9. — The  prophecy  seems  now  directed 
against  the  enemies  of  God's  people.  The  Assyrians  had 
made  a  treacherous  invasion  upon  Judea :  they  were  to 
be  paid  back  in  their  own  coin — destroyed  by  God's  direct 
judgments,  betrayed  by  the  treachery  of  rebels  and  as- 
sassins among  themselves.     Meanwhile,  Israel  prays  and 


ISAIAH  xxxiii.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  301 


waits  for  the  Lord,  even  as  Hezekiah  did  at  the  time  of 
this  invasion.  A  signal  interposition  on  the  part  of  God 
was  the  answer  to  this  prayer.  After  their  miraculous 
destruction  and  dispersion,  the  spoilers  went  forth,  nu- 
merous as  locusts,  on  the  hootj  thej  had  left.— Then  fol- 
lows what  we  have  no  doubt  had  a  fulfilment  in  these 
days — the  blessings  of  a  wise  and  righteous  government ; 
but  of  which  there  is  a  still  more  glorious  fulfilment  in 
resen^e.— My  God,  may  the  fear  of  Thee  be  put  into  my 
heart,  and  prove  there  a  treasure  for  heaven.  After  this 
the  prophet  goeth  back  again  on  the  precedent  distress  and 
subsequent  deliverance ....  Yerse  7  represents  the  grief 
and  terror  of  the  Jews.  Verses  8  and  9— the  violence  and 
deceit  of  Sennacherib,  and  his  ravages  on  the  way  to  Je- 
rusalem. 

10-24.— God  arose  in  His  might,  and  overthrew  their 
purposes— turning  them  to  their  own  destruction,  and 
making  a  thorough  work  of  it.  And  on  this  signal  mani- 
festation does  He  lay  claim  to  the  attention  and  rever- 
ence of  all,  far  and  near— even  of  ourselves,  on  whom  the 
latter  ends  of  the  world  have  come.  This  judgment  with- 
out the  walls  of  Jerusalem  was  well  fitted  to  strike  a  ter- 
ror into  the  hearts  of  those  within  it— and  who  were 
conscious  of  their  secret  defections  and  idolatries  from  the 
God  of  Israel  But  it  should  also  strike  a  terror  upon 
those  who  indulge  in  base  affections,  while  they  have  a 
name  and  standing  in  the  Christian  world.— My  God,  may 
I  stand  in  awe  and  sin  not.  Lay  an  arrest  upon  me,  0 
God.  Give  me  to  feel  the  power  of  that  dread  interroga- 
tion which  makes  verse  14  a  most  appalling  notabtle. 
Let  me  take  earnest  heed  lest  I  fall.  Shut  mine  eyes,  0 
God,  from  seeing  aught  that  can  tempt  me  to  evil.     Then 


30-2  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         isaiah  xxxiv. 

stall  I  be  set  on  liigli ;  and,  because  pure  in  beart,  sball 
see  God — and  even  now  may  look  boj^efullv  on  tbe  land 
of  uprigbtness,  tbougb  afar  off.  But,  in  tbe  first  instance, 
a  number  of  tbese  sayings  apply  to  tbe  great  deliverance 
of  tbe  Jews,  wbo,  reflecting  on  tbe  danger,  could  now  ask 
— but  wbere  is  tbe  Assyrian  army,  witb  its  ofiicers,  and 
tbose  wbo  kept  tbe  record  of  its  strengtb  and  of  its  con- 
quests ?  Tliese  foreigners,  of  strange  aspect  and  language, 
are  now  out  of  sigbt,  and  tbe  consequent  security  and 
quietness  of  Zion  is  described  in  terms  of  exceeding  beauty, 
and  witb  grapbic  impressiveness.  But  tbe  adequate  fulfil- 
ment of  tbis  representation  is  still  awaiting  us.  Meanwbile 
Jei-usalem,  secure  against  all  invasion  by  sea  or  land,  bad 
tbe  Lord  for  ber  Protector — after  tbat  tbe  Assyrian,  belp- 
less  as  a  disabled  sbip,  left  a  booty  wbicb  even  tbe  most 
decrepit  out  of  Jerusalem  could  securely  seize  upon ;  and 
tbe  inbabitants,  restored  to  beart  and  to  bealtb  again,  sball 
be  brougbt  into  peace  and  reconciliation  witb  God. 

Isaiah  xxxiv. — The  propbecy  is  now  directed  against 
tbe  nations  tbat  bad  been  against  tbe  people  of  God  and 
rejoiced  in  tbeir  calamities Mark  tbe  resemblance  be- 
tween tbe  phraseology  and  images  of  verse  4  witb  tbose  of 
Rev.  vi.  12,  13.     Tbe  bigb  should  be  brougbt  down  from 

tbeir  places What  a  striking  expression — '•  tbe  sword  of 

the  Lord  bathed  in  heaven !  '■"  Can  it  be  tbe  slaughter  of 
princes  and  nobles  ?  or  war  as  decreed  by  God  in  heaven, 
and  its  weapons  there  prepared  and  ordered  for  the  battle  ? 
It  lights  first  on  Edom,  and  in  reckoning  for  the  contro- 
versies of  Zion  ;  and  a  perennial  curse,  like  that  on  Sodom 
and  Gomorrah,  shall  rest  upon  tbeir  land.  "What  imagery 
of  desolation  is  here  !  far  exceedins^  that  of  Ossian  or  anv 


rsAiAH  XXXV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  503 


other  poet.  It  will  become  a  cliaos — the  confusion  and 
the  emptiness  being  the  very  terms  employed  in  describing 
the  state  of  the  earth  before  the  work  of  the  six  days. 
There  shall  be  an  exact  fulfilment  of  the  words  of  this 
prophecy,  and  to  ensure  it,  an  unfailing  propagation  of 
these  doleful  creatures  from  generation  to  generation,  for 
"  none  of  them  shall  want  their  mate/'  to  the  extirpation 
of  the  race  —  There  is  a  challenge  here  to  compare  the 
prediction  with  the  event — a  comparison  which  travellers 
liave  often  made,  to  the  credit  and  establishment  of  the 
Bible  as  a  book  of  Divine  inspiration. 

Isaiah  xxxv. — How  beautifully  does  the  prophet  now 
eiiloresce  into  a  most  glorious  chapter — too  glorious  for 
any  fulfilment  that  has  yet  taken  place,  and  which  will 
only  find  its  counterpart  in  futurity,  when  the  desert 
places  of  the  earth  shall  rejoice  because  of  manifesta- 
tions from  on  high  in  favour  of  Grod's  own  people — of  the 
Jews  first,  and  also  of  the  Gentiles. — Let  us  lift  up  our 
heads  and  rejoice.  The  day  of  God's  vengeance  on  the 
enemies  of  His  Church  will  come ;  and  the  triumph  of 
His  saints  will  come.  The  Spirit  will  be  poured  forth,  a 
spirit  of  light  and  life  and  power — even  where  now  all 
is  darkness  and  lethargy.  The  influences  shall  reach  even 
to  the  habitation  of  dragons,  verse  7,  (ch.  xxxiv.  13) ;  and 
a  great  spiritual,  perhaps  too  a  physical,  renovation  will 
take  place  in  the  most  unpromising  lands.  And  there 
shall  be  a  way  from  them  to  the  New  Jerusalem ;  but  it 
must  be  a  way  of  holiness,  into  which  nothing  unclean  or 
unholy  can  enter.  It  shall  only  be  for  those  who  enter  on 
the  nan-ow  path  of  holiness,  whose  whole  body  shall  be- 
come full  of  light,  and  whose  way,  a  way  hidden  from  the 


301  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         isaiah  xxxvi. 

Avise  and  prudent,  shall  lie  patently  before  tliem.  No 
obstiTiction  shall  arrest  these  redeemed  and  ransomed  of 
the  Lord,  on  their  road  to  life  everlasting :  whither,  0 
God,  do  Thou  conduct  my  heretofore  wandering  and  un- 
certain footsteps,  that  by  the  preparations  of  Thy  grace 
here,  I  may  be  fitted  for  that  glory  hereafter  which  is  to 
be  revealed 

Isaiah  xxxvi.  1-10. — "We  have  here  the  third  narrative 
which  occurs  in  the  Bible  of  the  Assyrian  invasion  in  the 
reign  of  Hezekiah.  The  present  one  resembles  that  in  the 
Second  Book  of  Kings,  where  it  is  more  fully  given  than  in 
the  parallel  history  of  Second  Chronicles.  There  is  no  men- 
tion, however,  made  here  of  the  peace-offering  wherewith 
he  tried  to  arrest  the  progress  of  Sennacherib,  as  if  Isaiah, 
who  must  have  felt  it  to  be  "v\Tong,  had  forborne  to  record 
it.  The  address,  however,  of  the  Assyrian  messengers  to 
the  people  of  Jei-usalem  is  much  the  same  with  that  which 
is  presented  in  the  direct  history,  with  certain  variations, 
but  still  with  such  a  degree  of  identity  as  to  give  the  im- 
pression that  the  prophet  and  the  historian  had  borrowed 
from  the  same  annals  or  written  documents  the  accounts 
which  they  have  respectively  drawn  out.  On  the  other 
hand,  we,  in  the  Chronicles,  have  the  measures  of  defence 
which  Hezekiah  resorted  to,  and  of  which  no  mention  is 
made  in  the  other  two  statements  of  the  affair. 

11-22. — The  resemblance  is  still  more  close  and  de- 
cisive of  the  conclusion,  that  the  two  writers,  the  pro- 
phet and  the  historian,  drew  from  some  common  narra- 
tive, or  drew  the  one  from  the  other ;  and  yet  there  is 
sufficient  variation — not  in  the  way  of  contradiction,  but 
of  defect  or  excess — to  convince  us  that  there  was  no 


ISAIAH  XXXVII.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  303 

slavisli  or  liteml  copying,  but  perhaps  a  catcliing  up  of 
the  substance  of  whole  sentences  by  as  many  successive 
looks,  and  putting  it  down,  either  in  their  own  words  or 
those  of  the  original,  as  their  memory  served  or  their 
taste  inclined  them  to  do.  And  there  is  nothing  in  these 
suppositions  to  do  away  with  the  plenary  inspiration 
of  Scripture,  as  being  made  up  of  the  very  matter  that 
God  willed,  and  in  the  very  words,  too,  that  He  willed. 
For  agreeably  to  our  view  of  this  subject,  these  words 
were  either  prompted  by  the  Spirit,  or  permitted  by  the 
Spirit.  If  prompted,  they  must  therefore  be  best ;  if  per- 
mitted, it  is  because  they  were  the  best ;  and  thus  the  op- 
timism of  the  Bible  is  secured,  while  perfectly  consistent 
with  those  principles  of  explication  which  are  adduced  to 
account  for  many  of  the  phenomena  of  mere  human 
authorship. 

Isaiah  xxxvil  1-14. — Tlie  resemblance  between  the 
two  narratives  is  fully  sustained  throughout  this  passage, 
and  indeed  closer  than  before.  Let  us,  however,  though 
a  second  time,  enter  upon  the  consideration  of  the  subject- 
matter.  First,  then,  let  me  follow  the  example  of  Heze- 
kiah,  in  that,  when  pushed  to  extremity,  he  had  recourse  to 
prayer. — What  time  I  am  overwhelmed  and  in  perplexity, 
as  he  was,  let  me  seek  to  the  Hock  that  is  higher  than  I. 
I  have  had  experimental  verifications  of  the  efficacy  of 
prayer ;  and  let  me  cherish  more  and  more  a  deep  sense 
of  its  efficacy,  and  of  that  particular  Providence  which 
overrules  all  the  affiiirs  of  men.  Hezekiah's  prayer  was 
associated  with  but  an  uncertain  hope,  a  "may  be,''  and 
yet  was  answered.  But  our  warrant  authorizes  us  to  be- 
lieve that  we  shall  receive  the  thing  we  pray  for;  and 


306  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        isaiah  xxxvii. 

according  to  our  faith,  it  is  done  unto  us We  scarcely 

discern  the  significancy  of  the  clause  in  vei^e  3,  as  to  the 
children  having  come  to  the  birth,  and  not  having  strength 
to  bring  forth,  unless  it  be  to  represent  in  a  general  way  a 
non-plus — a  time  of  great  pain,  without  the  prospect  of  any 
deliverance — of  utter  distress  mingled  with  utter  helpless- 
ness —  The  distant  event  which  drew  away  Sennacherib 
for  a  season,  is  a  fine  specimen  of  Providence,  but  which 
did  not  restrain  his  insulting  message  to  Hezekiah. 

15-19. — In  this  prayer  there  are  certain  things  that 
deserve  to  be  noted  for  a  direction  and  encouragement 
to  ourselves.  First,  the  designation  of  God  as  "  He  who 
dwelleth  between  the  cherubims,''  which  cherubims  were 
placed  on  each  side  of  the  mercy-seat,  with  their  wings 
extended  over  it.  The  mercy-seat  was  between  the  cheru- 
bims ;  and  what  an  impressive  representation,  then,  of 
Him  who  delighteth  in  mercy — even  of  God,  who  is  love ; 
and  who  should  ever  be  addressed  by  us  in  the  name  of 
Christ  our  mercy-seat  and  propitiation.  It  is  interest- 
ing to  mark  how  the  grounds  of  confidence  in  prayer 
under  the  Old  and  New  Dispensations  are  substantially 
the  same.  Again  we  remark  how  legitimate  it  is  to  urge 
in  prayer  the  plea  of  God's  own  glory,  the  honour  of  His 
attributes  and  name  being  concerned  in  the  fulfilment  of 
what  we  ask.  Hezekiah  urged  the  vindication  of  the 
true  God  in  the  eyes  of  the  idolatrous  nations ;  and  we, 
too,  are  on  the  same  vantage-ground  when  urging  His 
own  truth  in  the  promises  of  the  Gospel,  the  honour  of 
Christ  and  virtue  of  His  sacrifice,  as  reasons  for  hearken- 
ing to  our  petitions,  lest  Satan  should  have  room  for  ex- 
ultation and  triumph. 

20-38. — The  identity  of  the  two  narratives  regarding 


ISAIAH  XXXVIII.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  307 

Sennaclierib's  invasion  is  fully  sustained  to  the  conclusion 
of  them. — Let  us  take  courage  from  the  upshot  of  such  a 
visitation  as  came  upon  Hezekiah,  and  such  a  conduct 
as  he  observed  under  it.  There  was  a  most  encouraging 
answer  given  through  the  prophet  to  his  prayer.  This 
answer  is  so  framed  as  if  it  were  addressed  to  Sennacherib 
himself  We  know  not  whether  it  was  ever  transmitted 
to  him ;  but  it  serv^ed  its  main  purpose  when  made  known 
to  the  king  and  those  in  Jerusalem. — What  a  rebuke  is 
laid  on  the  proud  sufficiency  of  man  when  God  thus  ap- 
pears in  support  of  His  own,  and  for  the  assertion  of  His 
own  sovereignty The  "  hook  in  his  nose''  is  a  most  ex- 
pressive figure  ;  and  it  is  a  notable  phrase  to  "  take  root 
downward  and  bear  finiit  upward.''. . .  Through  the  zeal  of 
God  for  His  people,  the  survivors  of  all  these  calamities 
shall  obtain  protection  and  prosperity  at  His  hands.  They 
who  were  shut  up  in  Jei-usalem,  when  relieved  from  the 
siege,  shall  go  forth  to  their  wonted  abodes  in  the  country. 

November,  1846. 

Isaiah  xxxviii.  1-8. — The  narrative,  thus  far,  is  much 
the  same  with  that  in  the  Second  Book  of  Kings,  though 
somewhat  abridged It  is  worthy  of  all  notice  that  Heze- 
kiah pleads  his  own  personal  qualifications  for  the  accept- 
ance of  his  prayer,  and  the  plea  was  heard,  for  his  prayer 
was  granted  to  him.  Let  us  be  assured  that  the  theology 
which  forbids  such  a  plea  is  not  cast  in  the  mould  of 
Scripture  ;  and  that  while  altogether  entire  and  intact 
the  doctrine  of  our  being  justified  by  the  righteousness  of 
Christ,  still  in  the  work  and  along  the  progress  of  our  sanc- 
tification,  there  is  the  feeling  of  a  most  legitimate  security 
in  reflecting  upon  our  deeds  and  the  state  of  our  character. 


308  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         isaiah  xxxix. 

Tlie  alms  and  prayers  of  Cornelius  ascended,  in  a  memo- 
rial before  God.  God  is  not  unrighteous  to  forget  our 
work  and  labour  of  love.  If  our  hearts  condemn  us  not, 
then  have  we  confidence  towards  God. — 0  blessed  Father, 
I  at  the  same  time  deeply  and  intimately  feel,  that  for 
myself  I  have  wretchedly  little  to  speak  of,  or  that  I  would 
desire  to  be  remembered.  Remember  not  mine  iniquities, 
0  God.  Blot  out,  as  with  a  thick  cloud,  my  transgression. 
9-22. — For  this  writing  of  Hezekiah  we  are  exclusively 
indebted  to  this  Book  of  Isaiah.  It  is  in  keeping  with 
certain  other  parts  of  the  direct  narrative  ;  and  whence  we 
gather  of  this  monarch,  that  with  all  his  piety,  he  had  about 
him  the  traits  of  what  I  should  designate  as  a  soft  and  timid 
character.  There  does  not  appear  to  have  been  much  of 
that  faith  in  immortality  which,  in  the  language  of  Wil- 
berforce,  gives  a  certain  firmness  of  texture  to  the  mind. 
Perhaps,  however,  there  was  spiritual  distress,  or  the  fear 
of  God  as  a  Lawgiver,  which  prompted  this  eifusion,  as 
much  as  the  fear  of  death — more  especially  in  verse  13, 
where  he  seems  to  speak  of  God  as  an  enemy  and  avenger ; 
or  as  if  the  intimation  of  the  prophet  had  been  given  to  him 
in  the  form  of  a  threat. — My  God,  when  oppressed  do  Thou 
undertake  for  me.  He  obviously  did  recognise  the  inflic- 
tion as  one  of  discipline,  (verse  15,)  and  owns  it  for  good 
that  he  should  be  afflicted,  (verse  16.)  Out  and  out  it 
was  a  pleading  for  forgiveness,  followed  up  by  the  confi- 
dence that  he  had  prevailed.  How  little  did  he  succeed 
in  making  known  the  truth  to  his  children ;  and  yet  Ma- 
nasseh  did  repent  in  his  later  days — and  who  knows  but 
it  was  the  fruit  of  his  religious  education  ? 

Isaiah  xxxix. — Tliis  is  almost  a  fac-simile  of  2  Kings 


ISAIAH  XL.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  30D 

XX.  12-19 — saving  tliat  whereas  in  the  historical  Book  it 
is  said  that  Hezekiah  hearkened  unto  the  messengers  of 
the  king  of  Babylon,  in  this  prophetical  Book  it  is  said 
that  Hezekiah  was  glad  of  them.  The  notice  of  this 
transaction  in  Chronicles  is  very  general  and  brief;  but 
with  this  important  peculiarity — in  our  being  there  told, 
that  in  the  business  of  these  ambassadors  God  left  him  to 
try  him,  that  he  might  know  all  that  was  in  his  heart. — 
not  surely  that  God  Himself  might  know  Hezekiah,  but 
that  Hezekiah  might  know  himself ;  and  having  been  made 
sensible  of  an  exceeding  weakness,  might  humble  him- 
self because  of  it — might  confess,  and  turn  away  from  the 
idolatrous  affection  which  had  been  manifested  so  palpa- 
bly. Hezekiah  makes  incidental  exhibitions  of  himself, 
which  seem  to  me  any  thing  but  magnanimous.  It  is 
well  to  acquiesce  in  the  word  and  determination  of  God  ; 
but  it  would  appear  as  if  the  main  ingredient  of  that 
acquiescence  was  that  things  were  to  go  prosperously  in 
his  days.  There  may  have  been  patriotism,  however,  as 
well  as  selfishness,  in  that  the  good  of  his  country  was 
secure,  though  even  but  for  one  generation ;  and  of  the 
two  interests — ti-uth  and  peace — truth  is  the  highest. 

Isaiah  xl.  1-8. — The  present  chapter  seems  a  proper 
sequence  to  the  last,  in  that  the  former  announces  the 
peace  and  prosperity  of  Israel  for  a  time,  and  the  latter 
is  a  paean  of  high  gratulation ;  but  it  becomes  at  once 
obvious  that  it  is  the  celebration  of  a  far  greater  and  more 
enduring  triumph  than  was  ever  then,  or  than  has  ever 
yet  been  realized.  It  is  indeed  a  noble  effusion,  poured 
forth  in  the  full  flood  of  prophetic  inspiration,  and  not  to 
be  adequately  fulfilled  till  in  a  future  restoration.     There 


310  DAILY  SCRIPTUEE  READINGS.  isaiah  xl. 

are  certain  of  the  predictions  here  clearly  of  ulterior  ac- 
complishment to  the  first  restoration,  or  return  of  the 
Jews  from  Babylon,  as  that  of  verses  8  and  4,  since  which 
there  have  not  yet  been  days  of  glory  or  felicitation  for 
Israel.     It  is  interesting  to  mark  the  quotations  of  this 

passage  both  in  the  Gospels  and  in  1  Peter The  term 

"  double''  in  verse  2  is  variously  understood — either  as  ex- 
pressive in  the  general  of  the  ample  vengeance  that  had 
been  laid  on  Israel,  or  more  particularly  of  the  full  dis- 
charge that  she  may  now  receive — seeing  that  on  the  other 
side  of  the  reckoning,  as  by  the  method  of  double  entry, 
there  was  now  the  punishment  over  and  against  the 
iniquity. 

9-1 7. — We  cannot  think  of  this  prophecy  as  having  yet 
had  its  conclusive  fulfilment.  Does  not  verse  9  look  as  far 
as  to  that  time  when  the  feet  of  the  Lord  shall  stand 
upon  the  Mount  of  Olives ;  and  the  Jews,  perhaps  re- 
stored before  they  are  converted,  will  be  called  upon  to 
obey  their  God  ?  He  will  then  come  with  strong  hand  for 
the  work  of  subduing  His  enemies,  and  of  ensuring  the 
victory  with  all  its  fruits  and  rewards  to  His  ovm.  people. 
He  will  deal  tenderly  with  the  converts,  and  more  espe- 
cially the  Jews,  many  of  whose  eyes  will  now  be  opened 
for  the  first  time  to  look  upon  Him  whom  they  have 
pierced.  This  God-man  is  here  set  forth,  not  in  His 
gentleness  only,  but  in  His  greatness — and  not  in  His 
greatness  or  power  only,  but  in  His  wisdom.  To  that 
wisdom  may  we  at  all  times  defer — for  what  are  we,  either 
to  offer  our  own  counsels  to  God,  or  sit  in  judgment  over 
His — the  Governor  of  all  nations,  the  Lord  of  the  universe  ? 

18-31. — And  so  he  challenges  a  comparison  with  the 
high  and  incomprehensible  Jehovah.     The  prophet  shows 


ISAIAH  xLi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  3U 

a  disposition  to  irony  when  making  mention  of  idols  in 
this  and  other  places.  Idolatry  still  is  the  vice  of  poor  as 
well  as  rich.  Wliat  a  suhlime  representation  is  here  given 
— as  if  in  rebuke  to  all  these  follies — of  the  true  God ! 
Whether  we  view  Him  as  the  Lord  of  nature,  or  as  the 
Sovereign  disposer  of  men — what  an  exalted  place  of 
superiority  and  pre-eminence  is  here  assigned  to  Him 
who  both  stretched  out  the  heavens,  and  ruleth  over  the 
inhabitants  of  earth — sittmg  as  He  does  both  on  the 
throne  of  nature  and  the  throne  of  Providence  ?  The 
great  ones  of  this  lower  world  can  offer  no  effectual  resist- 
ance to  Him  who  doeth  all  things  according  to  His  own 
pleasure,  and  for  the  fulfilment  of  His  own  good  purposes* 
There  is  nothing  too  great  for  His  absolute  control,  and 
nothing  too  small  to  escape  His  notice,  so  as  either  to  be 
beneath  or  beyond  the  limits  of  His  government — not  a 
sparrow  falleth  to  the  ground  but  by  His  ordination ;  and 
what  a  security  is  this  to  His  own  people — the  very  argu- 
ment indeed  wherewith  our  blessed  Saviour  encouraged 
the  Apostles  ;  and  so  the  prophet  remonstrates  with  them 
for  their  despondency,  as  if  God  did  not  observe  their 
state,  and  had  passed  away  from  caring  for  them.  They 
utterly  misapprehended  Hjm,  and  their  own  experiences 

of  His  answer  to  prayer  should  correct  the  incredulity 

Verses  29  and  31,  both  of  them  as  notabilia  are  exceed- 
ingly precious. 

Isaiah  xll  1-13. — God  had  just  said,  "They  who  wait 
on  me  shall  renew  their  strength;''  and  He  now  says, 
"  Let  the  people  renew  their  strength  ;"  and  for  this  pur- 
pose let  them  draw  near  and  listen Though  it  should  be 

Cyrus  who  is  here  spoken  of,  he  is  evidently  a  type  of 


312  DAILY  SCRirTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xu. 

Clirist — even  as  the  return  from  Babylon  was  the  type 
of  a  future  and  greater  restoration There  is  the  recur- 
rence of  the  prophet's  usual  irony  against  idolaters ;  and 
this  followed  up  by  an  assertion  of  the  supremacy  of  the 
only  living  and  true  God.  Still  it  may  be  Abraham  who 
is  spoken  of  in  verse  2,  as  he  is  in  verse  8 ;  and  there  might 
be  here  not  only  a  prophecy  to  encourage,  but  a  retrospect 
to  convince  the  people,  of  G-od  having  been  theirs  at  the 

first,  and  that  He  will  also  be  with  them  at  the  last 

Verse  10  is  a  notabile,  and  should  give  heart  and  happi- 
ness to  all  who  trust  in  God.  He  can  subdue  all  our  ene- 
mies and  cause  them  to  be  at  peace  with  us.  Yet  surely 
a  greater  than  either  Abraham  or  Cyrus  is  here — and  a 
far  larger  deliverance  spoken  of  than  any  that  the  child- 
ren of  Israel  have  yet  experienced. — My  God,  I  pray  for 
help  from  Thy  sanctuary,  and  for  the  conversion  of  all 
opposed  to  the  ti-uth  as  it  is  in  Jesus. 

14-29. — I  am  reminded  in  these  verses  of  Boston's  tract 
— "  Worm  Jacob  threshing  the  mountains" — through  God 
choosing  the  weak  things  of  the  world  to  confound  those 
that  are  mighty. — "With  Thy  help,  0  God,  I  can  do  all 
things.  But  let  me  ever  glory  in  the  Lord  alone — for  not 
unto  me,  not  unto  me,  but  unto  His  name  be  the  praise. 
Nevertheless,  not  me  but  the  grace  of  God  that  is  in  me. 
I  am  poor  and  needy,  0  God,  and  find  nothing  in  myself 
but  leanness  and  barrenness.  0  water  me  with  the  dews 
of  Thy  spirit,  and  cause  me  to  abound  in  all  the  fruits  of 
righteousness ;  and  yet  recognise  Thee  and  Thy  hand  as 
doing  all  this. — Then  follows  a  challenge  to  idolaters,  under 
which  term  may  well  be  comprehended  the  ungodly  of  all 
ages,  and  more  especially  of  the  present — an  age  of  reason- 
ing infidelity,  and  alike  infidel  in  its  retrospect  of  the 


ISAIAH  xm.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  313 

past  and  confident  anticipations  for  the  future.  Their  de- 
vices for  the  realization  of  good  to  the  species  will  come  to 
nought.  These  lords  of  a  boastful  philosophy  will  yet  come 
to  nought.  He  who  is  the  great  antitype  of  Cyrus  will 
set  up  another  regimen,  when  all  old  things,  seen  to  be 
vain  and  impotent,  will  be  done  away,  as  well  as  the 
princes  and  great  masters  of  the  schemes  and  systems  that 
were  to  regenerate  the  world.  They  will  not  be  able  to 
hold  up  their  faces  for  these  ;  and  the  first  da^vning  hope 
for  the  world  will  be  either  in  the  coming  of  Christ,  or  in 
the  anterior  notices  that  the  spiritual,  who  alone  judge 
all  things,  shall  give  of  His  approach.  All  besides  this  or 
opposed  to  this,  will  be  found  to  be  mere  idle  declama- 
tion and  entire  disappointment. 

Isaiah  xlii.  1-9. — The  prophet  now  gives  us  the  very 
essence  of  evangelism  ;  and  what  he  says  of  the  elect  ser- 
vant in  the  Old  is  quoted  of  Christ  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment ....  To  "  bring  forth  judgment  to  the  Gentiles"  is  to 
bring  and  set  over  them  that  Divine  economy  which 
unites  the  truth  and  justice  of  Grod  with  the  salvation  of 
man.  And  what  doctrine  He  proposes  He  will  at  length 
establish  ;  and,  unwearied  both  in  Himself  and  through 
His  messengers,  will  persevere  till  He  have  taken  posses- 
sion of  the  whole  earth. — 0,  like  Him,  may  I  not  strive, 
but  be  gentle  unto  all  men.  Christ  glorified  not  Himself, 
but  He  was  called  of  God.  He  was  called  in  righteous- 
ness, a  voluntary  sufferer  for  our  sakes — that  He  might 
make  known  the  righteousness  of  God  in  our  reconcilia- 
tion— and  our  guarantee  for  the  promised  and  sure  mercies 
of  the  Gospel,  in  the  light  and  enlargement  of  which  we 
are  invited  to  rojoicc.T— Let  us  forsake  all  our  idols,  and 

VOL.  III.  o 


,314  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xliii. 

liencefortli  give  ourselves  up  unto  Christ.     Let  the  new 
regimen  here  predicted  have  the  lordship  over  us. 

10-25. — Here  is  a  song  of  triumph  because  of  the  en- 
largement that  Christ  was  to  bring  upon  the  earth.  The 
glory  of  the  Lord  shall  at  length  be  spread  abroad  and 
recognised  universally.  But  this  will  be  ushered  in  with 
tempests  and  conflicts,  and  fearful  struggles  against  the 
enemies  of  the  Church.  The  physical  changes  here  spoken 
of  might  be  significant  of  the  moral  changes  that  are  then 
to  be  effected,  and  which  are  more  literally  described  in 
verse  16 — a  notabile. — Bring  me,  0  Lord,  by  the  right  way, 
even  though  I  should  know  it  not.  Lead  me  and  enlighten 
me,  0  God Intermingled,  however,  with  this  wider  re- 
presentation, are  references  to  things  present  and  things 
of  old — the  idolatry  and  darkness  of  other  times.  The 
Jews,  who  should  have  been  the  sers^ants  of  God — the 
priests,  who  should  have  been  His  messengers,  had  their 
full  share  in  this  blindness — though,  seeing  and  hearing 
many  things,  they  should  have  known  better.  But  the 
Lord  will  vindicate  His  law  upon  them — an  assertion 
which,  as  applied  to  our  Saviour,  makes  verse  21  a  most 
illustrious  notabile.  And  thus  the  prophecy  returns  to 
Israel,  whose  sufferings  under  the  oppressor  are  here 
stated  to  be  in  judgment  for  their  sins. 

Isaiah  xliii.  1-13. — But  these  judgments  and  threat en- 
ings  are  followed  by  words  of  graciousness.  He  addresses 
Israel  as  his  own  peculiar  and  redeemed  people — bidding 
them  fear  not ;  and  this  on  the  strength  of  the  precious 
assurances  in  verse  2 — a  notabile.  He,  the  Holy  One  of 
Israel,  promises  never  to  forget  them,  and  appeals  to  what 
He  had  already  done  on  their  behalf,  when  He  punished 


ISAIAH  XLiii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  315 

and  brought  down  the  kingdoms  of  their  enemies  for  their 
sakes.  In  this  sense  He  gives  men  and  people  to  the  death 
for  their  life.  All  who  stand  in  the  waj  of  their  restora- 
tion shall  be  destroyed What  a  striking  description  here 

of  the  recalment  of  the  scattered  Israelites  to  their  own 
land ! — Form  me,  0  God,  for  Thj  glory.  God  pleads  His 
own  cause  with  the  idolatrous  nations,  and  challenges 
them  for  proof  in  support  of  their  own  divinities — while 
He  seems  as  if  appealing  to  the  Jews  as  His  witnesses ; 
nor  can  w^e  imagine  a  more  palpable  evidence  of  the  pre- 
siding authority  that  regulates  and  reigns  over  the  affairs 
of  men,  than  the  w^ondrous  preservation  of  this  people — 
to  be  enhanced  tenfold  when  the  prophecies  shall  have 
taken  effect  upon  them. — Verse  11  is  a  notabile. — He 
then  appeals  to  what  had  been  done  for  them  at  the  times 
"when  there  was  no  heathen  w^orship  among  them,  and 
which  they  can  testify  to  have  been  achieved  for  them 
only  by  the  true  God.  And  long  anterior  to  history  God 
was :  His  goings  forth  are  of  old,  even  from  everlasting. 

14-28. — The  prophecy  now  takes  a  more  special  direc- 
tion to  its  nearer  fulfilment,  in  the  destruction  of  Baby- 
lon and  the  return  of  the  Israelites  from  their  captivity. 
The  cry  of  the  flying  Chaldeans  w^ould  be  in  ships,  for 
cariying  them  down  the  Euphrates.  How  sublime  the 
ascription  to  God  of  making  a  way  in  the  sea,  and  a  path 
in  the  mighty  w^aters  I  He  compares  the  present  deliver- 
ance with  the  one  of  old  from  Egypt.  But  the  new  things 
were  to  be  greater  than  the  old. — For  the  explanation  of 
this  see  Jer.  xvi.  14,  15  ;  and  xxiii.  7,  8.  We  do  not 
read  of  miracles  in  their  passage  from  Babylon  to  their 
own  land ;  but  the  adequate  fulfilment  is  yet  to  come  in 
a  better  and  more  enduring  restoration  —  Verso  21  i^ 


316  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiaii  xliv. 

quite  a  notaLile. — My  God,  form  me  to  Tliyself,  that  I 
may  show  forth  Thy  praise  —  The  expression  "  to  be 
weary  of  God "  makes  verse  22  a  notabile.  He  remon- 
strates with  the  Jews,  and  lets  them  know,  that  not  for 
their  sakcs  but  for  His  own  does  He  blot  out  their  sins. 
Not  only  had  Adam  sinned,  but  the  princes,  who  should 
have  been  parents  to  Israel ;  and  hence  the  vengeance 
that  had  come  upon  their  state,  and  all  its  dignities,  by 
the  hand  of  Nebuchadnezzar. 

Isaiah  xliv.  1-8. — But  as  usual  the  prophet  alternates 
promises  with  threat enings  ;  and  now  comes  back  largely 
and  ftdly  to  the  great  and  glorious  blessings  which  are  in 
reserve  for  the  children  of  Israel Jesurun  means  right- 
eous, and  is  applied  to  Israel  in  some  few  places  of  Scrip- 
ture. But  though  righteous  in  the  legal  sense  of  the 
term,  or  in  virtue  of  the  sure  and  well-ordered  covenant, 
this  does  not  supersede,  but  on  the  contrary  prepares 
the  way  for  that  influence  by  which  we  are  made  personally 
righteous.  And  so  this  effusion  is  promised,  and  in  virtue 
of  this  many  will  turn  unto  the  Lord,  and  subscribe  them- 
selves individually  as  His.  Upon  this  God  again  makes 
assertion  of  His  supremacy,  and  also  sets  Himself  forth  as 
the  Redeemer  of  Israel ;  and  surely  nothing  will  make 
more  patent  His  reality  as  the  everlasting  Governor  of 
men,  than  the  gathering  again  of  His  ancient  people. 
They  will  be  most  impressive  witnesses  to  the  truth  of 
prophecy,  and  of  that  word  which  passeth  not  away.  Let 
others,  if  they  can,  shew  the  like;  but  failing  therein, 
the  evidence  for  the  true  God  will  outpeer  all  other  evi- 
dence, and  the  truth  will  prevail.  This  will  prove  true 
in  reference  to  all  false  systems,  as  well  as  to  those  idols 


I3AIAU  XLV.  DAILY  SCRITTURE  READINGS.  317 

to  which  the  prophet  here  makes  a  more  immediate  re- 
ference— the  idols  of  his  own  time,  to  whose  vanity  their 
worshippers  could  all  bear  witness. 

9-28. — In  this  passage  the  prophet  puts  forth  all  his 
irony  against  idols  and  idolaters ;  and  then  follows  verse 
20,  the  first  and  last  clause  of  which  are  both  of  them 
notabilia.  How  truly  may  it  be  said  of  those  who  make 
creature-comforts  their  all — that  "they  feed  on  ashes;"  and 
that  the  deceitfulness  of  sin  and  sense  has  led  them  astray 
from  the  fountain  of  living  waters — from  the  alone  satis- 
fying portion  of  the  immortal  spirit.  God  again  asserts 
His  sovereignty,  and  His  entire  claim  to  it  as  our  Former 

and  Governor,  and  He  whose  eye  is  continually  upon  us 

"  TJie  lie  in  one's  right  hand''  is  a  striking  expression.  It 
speaks  the  vanity  of  idols  made  with  men's  hands,  and 
the  vanity  of  thousands  of  those  objects  for  which  and  on 
which  men  bestow  the  main  labour  of  their  lives — walking 
in  that  way  and  in  those  pursuits  which  seem  to  them- 
selves right,  but  the  end  of  which  is  death Verse  22  is 

a  notabile.— My  God,  let  me  obey  Thy  precept  to  return, 
and  confide  in  Thy  declaration  that  Thou  hast  redeemed 
me ;  and  while  rejoicing  in  the  enlargements  of  Thy 
salvation,  let  me  hail  Thee  as  the  universal  Monarch,  who 
workest  all  in  all.  More  especially  wilt  Thou  open  up  a 
way  for  Thy  Church  through  all  the  obstacles  to  its  final 
establishment  under  the  conduct  of  Him  who  is  the  great 
antitype  of  Cyrus,  the  restorer  of  Israel. 

Isaiah  xlv.  1-13. — This  prophecy  was  strikingly  verified 
in  the  capture  of  Babylon. — "  Loose  the  loins  of  kings.'"* 
(See  Dan.  v.  6.)  The  opening  of  "  the  two-leaved  gates"  is 
in  itself  a  picturesque  fulfilment     Cyrus  is  the  anointed 


318  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xlv. 


of  God,  because  set  apart  by  Him  for  this  service,  and 
endued  with  the  requisite  qualifications.  The  calling  of 
Cyrus  by  name,  for  His  servant  Jacob's  sake,  gives  an. 
impressive  view  of  God  as  the  Lord  of  all  history,  both 
profane  and  sacred — the  one  being  made  subservient  to 
the  other.  It  enhances  this  lesson  that  Cyrus  was  the 
unconscious  instrument  of  God's  will,  who  called  him 
though  he  knew  it  not.  Others,  however,  were  made  to 
know  His  sovereignty  in  consequence,  as  the  Creator  of 
blessings  to  the  good — of  evil  to  the  rebellious  and  wicked. 
This  lesson  will  at  length  be  universal  from  east  to  west : 
and  0  how  precious  that  there  is  a  righteousness  which 
comes  upon  us  ah  extra,  even  from  heaven,  and  which,  if 
we  receive  by  faith,  will  bring  forth  salvation,  and  have 
its  fruit  in  a  righteousness  springing  up  from  earth. — Let 
us  therefore  submit  ourselves  to  this  righteousness  which 
God  Himself  created,  and  which  is  therefore  called  the 
righteousness  of  God.  He  will  accomplish  all  His  own  de- 
signs in  the  face  of  all  enemies.  It  is  vain  to  strive  with 
Him ;  and  the  restoration  of  the  Jews,  and  rebuilding  of 
their  city,  will  take  effect  through  Him  "whom  I  have 
chosen.'' 

14-25. — They  were  helped  by  Cyrus,  who  himself  was 
enriched  by  the  spoil  of  the  countries  which  he  had  con- 
quered ;  and  many  before  aliens  gave  in  their  adlierence 
to  them.  (Zech.  viii.  23;  Esther  viii.  17.)  Thou  hid  est 
Thyself,  0  God,  in  the  mysteriousness  of  those  ways  which 
are  not  as  our  ways. — Give  me,  0  Lord,  the  light  of  the 

knowledge  of  Thyself Verse  15  a  notabile What  an 

appropriate  text  verse  18  would  be  for  an  astronomical 
discourse !  He  created  not  worlds  in  vain,  but  formed 
them  to  be  inhabited Verse  19  is  a  notabile.     If  we 


ISAIAH  xLvi.  DAILY  SCRirTURE  READINGS.  319 

seek  we  shall  find. — Let  our  seeking  be  striving  ;  0  thaf 

we  may  not  be  disappointed Verse  21  an  illustrious 

notabile — a  just  God  and  a  Saviour  ;  and  so  pre-eminently 
is  verse  22. — Incline  my  heart  to  this  universal  call  and 
welcome,  0  God  —  Verse  23,  referred  to  in  Philip,  ii.  10, 
also  a  most  illustrious  notabile. — Give  me,  0  Lord,  give 
me  to  have  righteousness  and  streng-th  in  the  Saviour — 
justification  now  and  everlasting  glory  hereafter.  These 
verses  are  full  of  gospel. 

Isaiah  xlvi. — Isaiah  again  indulges  his  accustomed 
irony  against  idols ;  and  then  speaks  of  the  intimate  re- 
lation in  which  the  true  God  stands  to  the  children  of 
Israel.  0  that  we  felt  a  profounder  sense  of  what  is  due 
to  God,  as  God,  the  one  God,  than  whom  there  is  none  else 
• — distinguished  from  all  by  His  foreknowledge  and  abso- 
lute power.  There  are  many  earnest  and  solemn  reitera- 
tions by  this  prophet  and  others  at  the  particular  juncture 
of  Israel's  restoration  from  Babylon,  of  the  evils  of  idolatrv", 
and  very  frequent  appeals  on  the  exclusive  right  to  their 
homage  of  Him  who  alone  could  effect  their  deliverance. 
He  called  Cyrus  from  the  East,  and  His  hand  was  to  be 
recognised  in  every  footstep  of  their  return  to  their  ovm. 
land.  And  it  is  worthy  of  aU  obsers^ation  that  these  mani- 
festations, along  with  the  warnings  of  their  prophets  and 
teachers,  seem  to  have  been  effectual,  inasmuch  as  we 
never  read  after  this  period  of  their  having  again  lapsed 
into  the  worship  of  images — a  habit  so  obstinately  per- 
sisted in  throughout  so  many  previous  generations.  It  is 
indeed  a  remarkable  approximation  to  the  stout-hearted 
who  were  far  from  righteousness,  that  God  should  bring 
His  righteousness  near  and  within  reach  for  their  salvation. 


320  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         isaiah  xlviii. 

Isaiah  xlvii. — The  j^ropliet  continues  his  denunciations 
upon  Babylon,  recognising  at  the  same  time  the  true  God 
who  was  to  execute  all  these  judgments  as  the  Redeemer 
of  Israel.  He  was  ^vroth  for  their  oppressors  in  that 
they  showed  no  mercy — not  even  to  their  most  venerable 
elders  and  dignitaries.  (See  Lam.  v.  12.)  But  the  treat- 
ment they  bestowed  on  their  wretched  captives  was  to  be 

laid  in  hardships  and  humiliations  upon  themselves 

It  is  a  highly  poetical  image  where  Babylon  is  represented 
as  saying,  "  I  shall  be  a  lady  for  ever/'  (See  the  analogy 
to  this  in  Rev.  xviii.  7.)  But  this  felt  and  fancied  security 
was  soon  to  be  broken  up.  The  coming  slaughter  would 
deprive  many  of  their  children,  and  bring  many  into 
widowhood.  How  like  to  the  most  civilized  nations  now, 
in  that  their  wisdom  and  knowledge  had  perverted  them  ; 
and  they  are  like,  too,  in  the  infidelity  which  prompted  the 
confidence  that  there  were  none  wlio  saw  or  would  reckon 
with  them.  And  this  threatened  evil  did  come  upon 
them  unawares  and  suddenly.  Then  the  help  of  the  wise 
men  would  be  vain.  Those  educated  from  their  youth  in 
astrology  and  soothsaying  would  not  save  them.  How 
strikingly  these  allusions  are  in  keeping  with  what  we 
know  historically  from  Dan.  ii.  to  have  been  the  state  and 
habit  of  the  Babylonians.  But  all  should  go  to  wreck,  and 
be  utterly  brought  to  nought — by  means  both  of  a  general 
corruption  (verse  14)  and  a  general  dispersion,  (verse  15.) 

Isaiah  xlviii.  1-11. — After  denouncing  these  judgments 
on  Babylon,  God  by  His  prophet  expostulates  with  Israel 
— still  so  named,  though  Jews,  and  of  the  tribe  of  Judah. 
Though  their  professions  were  on  the  side  of  the  ti*ue  God, 
yet  doth  He  charge  them  with  hypocrisy.     He  appeals  to 


ISAIAH  xLviir.         DAILY  SCRirXURE  READINGS.  32f 

the  fulfilment  of  His  prophecies  that  He  might  win  them 
over  to  a  more  faithful  allegiance ;  and  every  argument 
was  needed — for  their  obstinacy  was  such  as  to  call  forth 
the  singularly  descriptive  images  of  "  their  neck  being  an 
iron  sinew,  and  their  brow  brass/'  To  turn  them  from  their 
idolatrous  tendencies  to  Himself,  does  He  appeal  to  things 
new  and  old,  more  especially  to  the  predictions  now  given 
of  their  restoration,  followed  up  by  a  speedy  accomplish- 
ment, and  which  should  have — which  had  indeed,  the  effect 
of  putting  a  conclusive  end  to  at  least  the  literal  worship 
of  idols  by  the  Jews  in  all  time  coming.  There  seems  to 
have  been  an  urgency  of  conviction  brought  to  bear  upon 
them  now — and  all  the  more  that  hitherto  they  had  been 
so  shut  against  the  influence  of  all  former  manifestations. 
Their  coming  delivery  was  not  for  any  merit  in  them, 
but  for  the  vindication  of  God's  glory  in  the  sight  of  the 
heathen,  and  that  Israel  too  might  at  last  be  turned  to 
Him  in  sincerity  and  truth. 

12-22. — The  Lord  addresses  Israel,  making  assertion  at 
the  same  time  of  His  own  creative  power  and  sovereignty. 
What  an  emphasis  does  the  modem  astronomy  give  to  the 
description  of  that  greatness  by  which  heaven  is  spanned  ! 
He  farther  challenges  their  trust  in  His  word,  because  of 
His  omniscience,  in  virtue  of  which  it  was  He  alone  who 
made  declaration  of  what  was  coming.  We  might  well 
imagine  how  such  prophecies,  followed  up  so  suddenly  and 
strikingly  by  their  fulfilment,  would  tell  upon  the  Israel- 
ites ;  and  they  are  much  pressed  in  argument  by  the  pro- 
phet. Let  us  here  note  God's  love  to  Cyrus,  the  chosen 
instrument  of  Babylon's  oA^erthrow.  God  spake  openly 
to  Israel  from  the  beginning,  first  from  Mount  Sinai,  and 
afterwards  in  open  vision  by  many  prophets  and  righteous 

o  2 


322  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  xli.x 

men  of  old.  What  a  truly  affecting  expostulation  in 
verse  18  from  God  to  His  rebellious  children  !  This  is  a 
striking  notabile. — 0  let  me  feel  how  much  Thou  art 
set  on  my  obedience,  and  my  own  miserable  shortnesses 
from  Thy  will  and  glory. — Isaiah,  I  should  have  remarked, 
sets  himself  forth  in  verse  16  as  a  special  messenger  sent 
by  God.  The  Israelites  are  bidden  by  him  to  flee  from 
Babylon,  and  they  seem  to  have  been  miraculously  sup- 
ported on  their  way  to  Judea.  There  is  at  least  express 
reference  made  to  the  miracles  of  their  passage    from 

Egypt  to  Canaan The  "  no  peace  unto  the  wicked''  of 

verse  22  seems  in  counterpart  to  the  peace  spoken  of  in 
verse  18  of  those  who  keep  the  commandments. 

Isaiah  xlix.  1-12. — The  address  is  now  directed  to  the 
isles  and  people  afar  off ;  and  it  is  obviously  Christ  who 
speaketh.  He  was  called  by  God,  even  as  Himself  called 
the  Apostles.  (John  xvii,  18.)  Out  of  His  mouth  cometh 
a  two-edged  sword,  (Rev.  i.  1 6,)  and  His  arrows  are  sharp, 
whether  for  the  conviction  of  men  or  the  overthrow  of 
enemies.  (Heb.  iv.  12  ;  Ps.  xlv.  5.)  But  He  came  unto 
His  own,  and  His  own  received  Him  not.  He  sped  ill 
with  the  Jews ;  but,  lo  !  He  turned  to  the  Gentiles,  and 
great  amongst  them  were  the  triumphs  of  His  Gospel ; 
and  the  barren  places  of  the  earth — formerly  in  thickest 
darkness,  shall  be  lighted  up  and  fertilized  by  Him.  All 
obstacles  in  the  way  of  a  general  diffusion  will  at  leng-th 
be  removed  ;  and  great  will  be  the  spiritual  blessings 
poured  forth  on  the  many  who  shall  receive  the  truth 
as  it  is  in  Jesus.  In  the  midst,  however,  of  all  this 
progress  and  prosperity  among  the  Gentiles,  Israel  is 
left  desolate ;  but  in  the  course  of  this  address  words  of 


isAiiin  L.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  323 

comfort  are  given,  and  prospects  of  enlargement  held  out 
for  her  also. 

13-26. — Notwithstanding  the  disposition  of  commenta- 
tors to  apply  this  passage  to  the  Church  at  large,  we  re- 
gard it  as  bearing  specially  upon  the  Jews,  and  their 
future  or  antitypical  restoration.  The  general  call  upon 
the  world  to  rejoice  is  because  of  God's  comforting  His 
people — ^by  whom  I  understand  His  ancient  people  the 
Jews,  Zion  now  complaining  of  her  outcast  widowhood. 
How  full  of  comfort  is  verse  15 — an  illustrious  notabile. 
How  endearing  is  verse  16 — and  how  obvious  to  my  view 
that  these  walls  are  the  walls  of  Jerusalem.  The  Jews 
are  to  get  homage  from  the  Gentiles.  The  oppressors  in 
and  about  Judea  shall  at  length  make  way ;  and  even 
their  ancient  patrimony  will  be  too  narrow  for  them. 
The  Jews  after  having  lost  their  nation  and  nationality, 
shall  be  abundantly  recruited  by  descendants  and  Gen- 
tiles, who  will  gladly  naturalize  with  them  ;  and  not  only 
so  but  will  help  them  back  to  their  own  land.  Even  kings 
and  queens  will  foster — nay,  fall  down  before  them. — Verse 
23,  a  notabile. — Thus  will  Israel  be  taken  from  under 
the  power  of  her  enemies,  even  as  when  a  prey  and  a 
captive  to  Babylon,  she  was  delivered  out  of  their  hands. 
God  will  rescue  His  own,  and  retaliate  their  wrongs  upon 
His  adversaries. 

Isaiah  l. — God  had  not  put  away  Israel,  but  Israel 
had  renounced  God;  neither  did  He  give  them  up  to 
their  enemies  in  payment  of  what  was  due  to  them,  but 
all  was  the  effect  of  their  own  transgressions.  There  was 
no  man  that  would  listen  to  Him  or  to  His  messengers, 
and  not  from  the  want  of  power  in  Him,  but  of  duteousness 


324  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  li. 

in  them — therefore  it  was  that  thej  had  not  been  de- 
livered   If  Isaiah  speaks  of  himself,  it  is  as  a  type  of 

Christ. — Verse  4  is  a  notabile,  from  its  expression  of  "  a 
word  in  season  to  them  that  are  weary/'  For  verse  5,  see 
Psalm  xl.  6,  7.  Isaiah  was  helped,  and  so  was  the  anti- 
type, the  God-man,  in  some  mysterious  way.  And  we  find 
verses  8  and  9  referred  to  in  Romans  viii.  33,  34.  But  I 
know  not  a  more  precious  or  important  passage  than 
verse  10 — an  illustrious  notabile. — I  may  believe  in  the 
dark :  I  may  resolutely  trust  imder  the  greatest  heavi- 
ness and  deadness  and  dejection  of  spirits.  Even  when 
there  is  not  the  light  of  any  cheering  manifestation  in 
my  soul,  I  may  stay  and  steady  myself  upon  God. — 0  let 
me  ever  look  upwardly  to  the  place  where  Thine  honour 
dwelleth  ;  and  even  when  there  is  no  light  from  heaven 
to  shine  upon  my  path,  let  me  walk  on  earth  in  the  way 
of  all  Thy  known  commandments.  And  0  let  the  light 
which  shines  upon  me,  ever  be  the  light  of  Thy  word.  Let 
me  beware  of  my  OAvn  wisdom  or  my  o^vn  lofty  imagina- 
tions— else  I  shall  lie  down  in  sorrow.  Deliver  me,  0 
God ;  save  me  from  all  my  pei'plexities  ;  save  me  from  the 
sin  unto  death. 

Isaiah  li.  1-10. — Those   addressed  here  may  be  the 

same  with  them  of  ch.  1.  10,  who  are  walking  and  trust 

"  The  rock  whence  ye  are  hewn''  makes  verse  1  a  notabile. 
Let  us  take  its  lesson  by  thinking' well  of  the  guilt  and 
corruption  of  our  natural  state.  See  how  the  remem- 
brance of  His  covenant  with  Abraham  operates  in  favour 
of  Israel,  and  will  to  latest  posterity.  "Wliat  a  brilliant 
perspective  is  here  set  before  them  !  He  will  establish  a 
jurisprudence  that  shall  enlighten  and  reach  to  all  people; 


ISAIAH  LI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  325 

and  in  which  the  Gentiles  shall  trust.  The  offer  of  salva- 
tion has  gone  forth,  and  an  everlasting  righteousness  is 
brought  near  to  all — the  perpetuity  of  which  is  celebrated 
in  verse  6,  a  most  sublime  notabile.  Heaven  and  earth 
shall  pass  away,  but  God's  word  shall  never  pass  away. — • 
Put  Thy  law,  0  God,  in  my  heart ;  and  save  me  from  the 
fear  of  man,  which  is  a  snare.  Let  our  confidence  be 
in  a  higher  strength  than  in  an  arm  of  flesh — even  in 
that  arm  which  smote  Egypt,  and  the  dragon  or  Pharaoh 
its  king,  and  dried  up  the  Red  Sea  that  His  own  might 
pass  over. 

11-23.  —  On  these  recollections  of  the  past,  does  the 
prophet  ground  his  anticipation  of  future  mercies  and 
deliverances  for  Israel. — Verse  11 — a  beautiful  notabile. 
"Wliat  a  persuasive  follows  against  the  fear  of  man  ! — Let 
me  stay  myself  on  the  great  and  all-powerful  God,  nor 
stand  in  awe  of  the  oppressor.  Did  I  but  think  of  man's 
inherent  weakness,  and  of  the  helpless  death  that  is 
coming  so  speedily  on  the  proudest  and  most  formidable 
of  all,  I  would  not  give  way  before  any  of  my  fellow-mor- 
tals, when  I  stood  on  the  side  of  truth  or  righteousness. 
The  exile,  intent  on  liberation,  is  made  to  know  of  the 
power  and  past  doings  of  Ood  ;  and  by  the  sure  word  of 
prophecy  informs  us  of  the  new  heavens  and  the  new 
earth,  in  which  Zion  will  find  its  dwelling-place.  "We  can 
have  little  doubt  from  verse  16,  that  a  larger  and  more 
enduring  restoration  is  here  in  the  perspective  than  their 
approaching  return  from  Babylon.  The  Jews  for  many 
generations  have  been  a  sadly  oppressed  and  persecuted 
people.  They  have  suffered  a  long  judicial  regimen  of 
pains  and  penalties ;  but  the  cnp  of  trembling,  even  the 
dregs  of  it,  which  they  are  now  drinking,  will  be  at  length 


3^26  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isafah  lit. 

taken  out  of  their  hand  ;  and  most  certam  it  is,  that  this 
cannot  be  said  in  reference  to  their  restoration  from  the 
captivity  of  Babylon — for  since  that  they  have  undergone 
the  dispersion  and  cruel  oppression  of  many  long  gene- 
rations. "We  should  infer  from  verse  23  that  their  final 
return  to  their  own  land  will  also  be  withstood  by  those 
into  whose  hands  the  cup  of  trembling  will  pass — even 
to  them  who  will  then  be  the  afflicters  of  Israel. 

December,  1846. 

Isaiah  lii. — It  is  quite  obvious  of  this  prophecy  that 
it  expands  beyond  the  dimension  of  its  t^^^ical  event, 
and  that  it  relates  not  to  a  past  but  to  a  future  and  final 
deliverance  of  the  Jews.  For  very  nought  they  had  for- 
saken God,  and  incurred  His  displeasure  ;  but  He — not 
for  the  sake  of  any  righteousness  of  theirs,  will  again 
recall  and  be  reconciled  to  them.  The  deliverances  of 
old  times  will  again  be  repeated  in  their  favour,  to  the 
confusion  of  infidels  and  blasphemers.  Israel  will  receive 
the  faith,  and  so  attain  the  knowledge  of  the  true  Grod. — 
Yerse  7 — a  most  eminent  notabile. — Their  "  seeing  eye  to 
eye"  makes  for  the  personal  reign  of  Him  whose  feet 
shall  stand  on  the  Mount  of  Olives.  God's  restoration  of 
the  Jews  will  be  an  event  to  arrest  the  wonder  of  the 
whole  earth ;  and  it  will  be  a  leisurely,  well-concerted 
movement,  under  the  guidance  of  One  far  more  illustrious 
than  the  Ezras,  or  Nehemiahs,  or  Zerubbabels  of  the  Old 
Testament ;  One  at  the  approach  of  whose  reign  all  the 
kings  of  the  world  will  fall  prostrate,  and  at  length 
acknowledge  His  rightful  sovereignty  as  King  of  kings, 

as  Lord  of  lords Can  the  "marred  visage''  and  form 

of  this  exalted  Servant  of  the  Most  High — can  He  be 


ISAIAH  Liii.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  327 

anj  other  than  the  Lord  Jesus  ?  Or  can  the  Jerusalem 
in  which  it  is  here  required  that  they  should  be  clean 
who  bear  the  vessels  of  the  Lord — ^be  any  other  in  point 
of  full  and  adequate  fulfilment  than  the  Jerusalem  of 
Rev.  xxi.  27,  into  which  nothing  that  is  defiled  should 
enter  ? 

Isaiah  liii. — This  is  indeed  a  super-eminent  chapter, 
and  one  that  might  be  read  daily  and  devotionally  with 
the  utmost  benefit  to  the  soul.  Who  can  refuse  its  appli- 
cation to  Christ — to  Him  who  came  unto  His  own,  and 
His  own  received  Him  not  ?  But  He  stooped  to  this 
humiliation  that  He  might  become  a  sacrifice  for  sin. 
What  a  demonstration  of  native  ungodliness,  in  that  we 
go  every  man  astray,  simply  when  we  turn  each  to  his 
own  way! — 0  that  I  were  more  impressed  by  that  meek 
and  patient  and  uncomplaining  spirit,  which  led  Him  in 
love  to  us  to  resign  Himself  as  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter. 
How  strikingly  are  the  circumstances  here  foretold  of  His 
death  and  burial,  confirmed  by  the  events  of  His  history  ! 
— My  God,  as  He  poured  out  His  soul  unto  the  death  for 
me,  may  I  give  up  my  soul  in  absolute  and  entire  dedica- 
tion to  Him,  and  may  He  see  in  me  of  the  travail  of  His 
soul,  and  be  satisfied.  It  is  by  the  knowledge  of  Him 
that  we  are  justified  ;  and  by  His  intercession  may  I  re- 
ceive all  faith  and  all  holiness.  His  at  length  will  be  the 
greatness  and  the  victory — when  every  knee  shall  bow 
to  Him,  and  every  tongue  confess.  And  0  how  much  is 
to  be  gathered  from  "  that  it  pleased  the  Lord  Jehovah  to 
bruise  him  ! '"  Our  redemption  takes  its  origin  from  the 
love  of  God.  Let  us  not  frustrate  the  grand  design  either 
by  our  negligence  or  unbelief. 


328  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  lt. 

Isaiah  liv. — Tliis  chapter  is  by  most  applied  to  the 
Church  generally.  We  are  strongly  persuaded  of  a  twofold 
accomplishment :  that,  in  the  first  instance,  the  Gentiles 
were  the  desolate  and  Israel  the  married  wife  ;  but  in  the 
second  instance,  as  now,  the  Jews  are  the  desolate,  but 
soon  to  be  married,  or  restored  from  her  present  state  of 
widowhood,  and  in  this  restoration  to  be  the  forerunner  of 
a  far  more  extended  Christianity  than  was  ever  realized 
by  the  Gentile  Church.  See  Rom.  xi.,  where  we  learn 
that  the  diminishing  of  the  Jews  was  the  riches  of  the 
Gentiles,  but  that  the  fulness  of  the  Jews  was  to  be  the 

harbinger  of  a  far  mightier  enlargement Yerse  2  is  a 

notabile  ;  and  so  are  verses  8,  10,  13,  and  17 How  like 

to  Israel  now  is  a  woman  afflicted  and  grieved  in  Spirit ! 
The  prophecy  here,  then,  has  been  in  part  accomplished ; 
but  we  must  look  to  futurity  for  its  full  accomplishment. 
— 0  may  I  be  taught  of  God,  and  have  the  peace  of  one 
of  His  children.  Thy  kingdom  come,  0  Lord  ! . . .  Alto- 
gether a  noble  chapter. 

Isaiah  lv. — This  chapter  is  the  next  to  the  fifty-third 
in  the  essence  of  evangelism.  "What  a  precious  invitation, 
and  comprehensive  too,  of  the  whole  human  race ! — My 
God,  let  me  no  longer  labour  for  nought,  but  seek,  and  in 
dependence  on  Clirist's  power,  for  Christ's  unsearchable 
riches.  Let  me  hear,  or  let  me  read,  the  word,  and  enter 
into  covenant  with  God,  sure  of  His  promised  mercies — 
the  mercies  of  David,  or  of  Him  who  is  the  Son  of  David, 
and  in  whom  all  the  promises  are  yea  and  amen.  Let 
me  believe  Him  as  my  witness — as  my  leader  and  com- 
mander, let  me  ever  obey  Him The  address  in  verse  5 

seems  to  bo  from  the  Father  to  the  Son  ;  and  through  Him, 


ISAIAH  Lvi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  829 

in  verse  6,  to  all  whom  tlie  Gospel  is  made  to  reach. — 
Whilst  Thou  art  in  the  way,  0  God,  may  I  seek  and  find 
peace  with  Thee  through  Jesus  Christ,  whom  Thou  hast 
sent.  In  turning  to  Him,  give  me  to  turn  from  all  mine 
iniquities.  Surely  Thou  art  not  as  man.  Let  me,  in  spite 
of  all  my  past  ungodliness,  believe  in  Him  who  justifieth 
the  ungodly.  My  hope,  0  Lord,  is  in  Thy  word.  It  shall 
accomplish  all  it  was  sent  for.  Heaven  and  earth  shall 
pass  away  before  a  jot  or  tittle  of  it  shall  pass  away. 
Give  me,  then,  0  Lord,  the  experience  of  its  promised 
enlargements  ;  and  with  Thy  righteousness  as  mine,  let 
me  break  forth  into  joy  in  the  glorious  prospect  of  a  re- 
generated world. 

Isaiah  lvi. — Here  we  have  the  antecedency  of  doings 
to  the  revelation  of  salvation,  or  of  that  righteousness 
of  God  on  which  it  rests. — My  God,  enable  me  to  lay 
hold  of  Christ,  and  to  lay  hold  of  the  new  obedience 
together,  unembarrassed  by  aU  the  speculations  of  aU.  the 
controversialists.  And  the  call  is  to  every  one — Gen- 
tile as  well  as  Jew — and  to  those  who  laboured  under 
ceremonial  disqualifications  as  well  as  others.  Whoso- 
ever taketh  hold  of  the  covenant  will  have  all  its  blessed 
stipulations  made  good  to  him.  All  such  shall  be  pre- 
ferred to  a  higher  distinction  than  ever  Jews  attained  to 
under  their  Economy. — My  God,  let  me  not  lose  my  re- 
spect or  my  obsers^ance  for  the  Sabbath  in  the  face  of  such 
testimonies  on  its  behalf  as  we  here  find  mixed  up  with 
this  obvious  prophecy  of  evangelic  times.  0  God,  make 
Jerusalem  a  praise  in  the  earth,  that  we  might  be  joyful 
in  this  house  of  prayer  for  all  people — when  the  men 
of  all  nations  shall  repair  to  it  along  with  the  present 


330  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  lvit. 

outcasts  of  Israel The  enemies  spoken  to  in  verse  9,  and 

after  it,  may  be  tlie  oppressors  of  the  Christian  Church, 
whose  aim  it  may  be  not  to  extirpate  but  to  tyrannize 
over  it.  I  can  imagine  a  state  of  things  in  which  the 
civil  magistrates  might  carry  it  with  hostility  and  violence 
against  the  time  worshipper,  while  protecting  their  own 
hireling  Churches ;  whose  ministers,  on  the  other  hand, 
careless  of  all  but  their  revenues,  might  give  themselves 
up  to  utter  carelessness. 

Isaiah  lvii.  1-12. — This  chapter  seems  a  continuation 
of  the  last  verses  of  the  preceding,  or  of  an  address  to 
still  rebellious  and  alienated  Israel.  He  had  often  taken 
their  righteous  and  good  kings  from  them,  not  replaced 
by  successors  in  their  o-^ti  likeness.  They  are  taken 
away  from  the  evil  to  come,  and  rest  in  their  graves  till 
the  resurrection.  (See  Rev.  xiv.  13.) . . .  Verse  1  is  a  nota- 
bile  of  frequent  application  when  good  men  die.  The 
prophet  then  pours  forth  his  denunciations  on  the  idolaters 
of  his  own  time  among  his  countrymen,  whose  abomina- 
tions, as  appears  from  his  description  of  them,  were  carried 
to  a  most  revolting  height.  Mockery  of  the  true  religion, 
vile  affections,  child-murder,  seem  all  to  have  entered 
into  the  black  catalogue  of  their  grievous  and  unnatural 
offences.  They  had  both  river  and  mountain  gods.  On 
those  posts  and  doors  where  the  memorials  of  the  Divine 
Being  should  have  been  inscribed,  did  they  inscribe  the 
remembrance  of  their  idols,  and  love  the  places  of  their 

adulterous  worship The  "  king''  of  verse  9  may  have 

been  any  of  their  chief  idols,  or  Moloch "Thou   art 

wearied  in  the  greatness  of  Thy  way,''  is  still  very  expres- 
sive of  the  state  and  habits  of  those  who  give  themselves 


ISAIAH  LVir.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  831 

up  to  the  toil  and  disquietudes  of  an  unsatisfying  ambi- 
tion. Yet  did  they  not  renounce  it ;  for  this  one  object 
and  that  other,  were  at  times  obtained,  and  entangled 

them  all  the  more "  Thou  hast  lied ''  in  renouncing  my 

service  on  the  pretext  of  my  being  a  hard  master ;  and 
does  not  the  lengthened  period  of  my  forbearance  all  the 
time  that  I  have  kept  silence  prove  the  contrary?  "But 
I  will  now  declare  Thy  righteousness,'"'  which  is  tanta- 
mount to  this — I  will  now  set  thy  sins  in  order  before 
mine  eyes.    (Psalm  1.  21.) 

13-21. — The  prophet  here  tells  them  of  their  vain  con- 
fidence in  the  companies  whether  of  their  numerous  gods 
or  their  idolatrous  allies.  God  is  the  alone  rightful  ob- 
ject of  confidence,  and  He  will  amply  reward  it.  The 
leaders  in  the  great  movement  of  their  return  from  disper- 
sion or  captivity,  will  open  up  a  way  for  those  poor  out- 
casts who  have  been  visited  with  penitence  and  godly 

sorrow Verse  15  is  a  precious  notabile  ;  and  0  how 

precious  also  is  verse  16  !  God  will  correct  in  measure — 
He  will  not  try  His  own  beyond  their  powers  of  sufierance. 
He  wants  not  their  spirits  to  fail  but  to  revive  ;  and  hav- 
ing respect  to  the  work  of  His  hand,  He  wants  not  to 
destroy  the  souls  which  Himself  has  made.  Covetous- 
ness  was  a  prevalent  sin  among  them,  (Jer.  vi.  13,)  and 
for  this  God  withdrew  Himself  for  a  season,  and  chastised 
them.  Yet  went  they  on  in  the  counsel  of  their  own 
hearts ;  but  God  was  not  overcome  of  their  evil,  but  over- 
came evil  with  good.  And  there  were  mourners  among 
the  people,  to  whom  He  was  especially  tender  —  The 
"  fmit  of  the  lips''  being  here  a  proclamation  of  peace, 
likens  it  to  that  Gospel  which  was  published  over  the 
world,  beginning  at  Jerusalem ;  yet  not  a  peace  to  the 


332  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  lix. 

wicked,  for  if  they  turn  not  from  their  iniquities  to 
Christ,  the  hostility  of  God  will  abide  on  them,  and  their 
own  tumultuous  and  unsanctified  passions  will  be  the 
perpetual  tormentors  of  their  hearts. 

Isaiah  lviii. — An  earnest  expostulation  with  Israel,  > 
and  reproof  for  their  hypocrisy.  What  self-deceit  in  the 
delight  that  we  have  in  ordinances,  and  yet  real  unmind- 
fulness  of  God  and  His  law !  They  sought  their  own  plea- 
sure, and  exacted  their  full  measure  of  service  from  their 
labourers,  even  in  those  days  which  they  professed  to  set 
apart  for  God.  They  fasted  because  of  their  calamities, 
while  for  these  they  reproached  each  other,  and  quarrelled 
among  themselves. — Then  follows  a  very  noble  passage — 
a  truly  great  and  illustrious  notabile "Wliat  a  vitally  im- 
portant lesson,  that  light  is  the  result  of  obedience,  as 

well  as  the  security  of  God's  protection  all  round The 

*'  putting  forth''  might  signify  a  threat,  or  perhaps  a  false 
promise. — Make  me,  0  Lord,  like  a  watered  garden  ;  and 
as  the  fruit  of  my  own  personal  Christianity,  let  me  act 
as  a  restorer  and  repairer  on  the  minds  of  others  also. 
And  what  a  testimony  here  to  the  importance  of  Sabbath- 
sanctification  !  On  that  day  let  my  own  spirit  be  kept  at 
abeyance. 

Isaiah  lix.  1-15. — The  prophet  still  insists  on  God's 
righteous  controversy  with  Israel.  There  is  no  want 
either  of  power  or  willingness  to  serve  on  the  part  of  God  ; 
but  the  sins  of  His  people  formed  the  barrier  in  the  way 
of  mercy. — Then  follows  a  succession  of  charges  against 
them.  Their  thoughts  were  the  germs  and  fountains  of 
all  iniquity,  even  as  tho  cockatrice'  egg  and  the  spider's 


ISAIAH  LIS.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  833 

web  are  the  preparatives  of  venom  and  miscliief.  Wliat 
they  weave  is  not  for  use  but  for  violence  and  craft. 
They  will  not  profit  themselves  by  their  works  of  wicked- 
ness to  others  —  In  verses  7  and  8  we  recognise  the  words 
quoted  in  Romans  iii.  Peace  and  light  and  safety  are  all 
of  them  alien  from  sin.  The  darkness  consequent  there- 
upon is  the  countei'part  of  that  illumination  spoken  of  in 
ch.  Iviii.  8.  And  beside  this  natural  effect  of  such  trans- 
gressions there  was  the  awakened  displeasure  of  God, 
because  judgment  had  disappeared  from  the  land,  to  the 
general  degradation  of  the  many,  and  oppression  of  the 
helpless  and  righteous  few. 

16-21. — But  God  Himself  arose  as  a  God  of  vengeance, 
both  for  His  own  glory  and  for  the  reparation  of  the 
wrongs  of  His  people.  The  Lord  Jehovah  (Jesus  Christ) 
in  the  utter  inability  of  all  others  to  perform  the  work  of 
intercessor,  did  Himself  undertake  it ;  and  the  deeds  of 
prowess  spoken  of  here  tell  not  only  of  His  conflict  with 
the  invisible  powers  of  darkness,  but  of  His  successful 
warfare  against  the  enemies  of  the  Church  upon  earth. 
The  expressions  used  in  this  passage  are  not  adequately 
met  by  any  past  deliverance  of  the  Jews,  or  any  chastise- 
ment inflicted  yet  upon  their  adversaries.  We  believe 
that  when  to  the  islands  He  will  repay  recompense,  it 
will  be  a  wide-world  hostility  that  He  shall  then  deal 
with.  It  looks  as  if  the  small  remnant  of  altogether 
Christians,  overborne  by  infidelity,  united  perhaps  with 
Popery,  will  have  their  first  dawnings  of  a  day  of  redemp- 
tion in  the  manifestation  of  God's  favour  to  the  Jews, 
whether  through  sensible  tokens  from  Him,  or  through 
the  symptoms  among  them  of  a  national  return  to  that 
faith  which  rests  on  the  foundation  of  their  own  prophets, 


334  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  lx. 

as  well  as  of  tlie  apostles  of  Christ ianity.  This  may  cause 
a  re-action  among  the  powers  of  this  world ;  but  the 
spirit  of  the  Lord  will  lift  up  a  standard  against  them, 
and  the  result  will  be  a  universal  triumph  for  the  Church, 
whereof  Zion  shall  then  be  the  centre  or  capital.  And 
the  Redeemer  Avill  then  come  to  this  metropolis  of  the 
regenerated  world,  (Zech.  xiv.,)  but  whether  in  the  way 
of  a  personal  appearance  or  not  I  am  not  able  to  say. 

Isaiah  lx.  1-10. — This  seems  still  an  address  to  the 
Jews,  who  will  by  this  time  form  the  nucleus  and  central 
attraction  of  the  Christian  Church — a  Church  in  broad 
and  discernible  contrast  with  a  world  lying  in  darkness 
and  wickedness ;  nevertheless,  all  round  will  many  flock 
towards  this  peculiar  society.  The  general  effect  of  the 
chapter  is  highly  in  favour  of  its  being  the  Jews  who  are 
here  set  forth  as  the  centre  towards  which  there  is  to  be 
a  wide-world  movement.  Even  themselves  will  be  solem- 
nized with  a  spectacle  in  which  they  will  so  obviously  dis- 
cern the  hand  of  God — in  turning  the  hearts  of  kings  to 
favour  them,  and  bringing  wealth  and  crowds  of  adherents 
towards  them  from  all  the  quarters  of  the  earth.  The 
visit  of  the  queen  of  Sheba  to  Jerusalem  will  then  prove 
the  type  of  a  far  more  glorious  fulfilment — when  the  isles 
of  the  Gentiles  shall  give  in,  and  become  the  willing  tri- 
butaries of  a  spiritual  monarchy  that  will  rule  over  the 
men  of  all  lands. 

11-22. — I  cannot  doubt  the  identity  of  this  prophetic 
description  with  that  in  Rev.  xxi.  22-26  ;  and  if  so,  it 
greatly  confirms  the  noAV  growing  persuasion  that  the  Jews 
will  bear  a  very  prominent  and  ostensible  part  in  the 
^yorld's  regeneration.    The  Gentiles  are  clearly  represented 


ISAIAH  Lxi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  333 

as  tributary  and  subordinate  to  the  Jews,  tbougb  tliey 
shall  be  willing  tributaries  and  will  yield  spontaneous 
obedience  to  the  government  of  truth  and  righteousness 
that  will  then  be  set  up  in  the  earth.      God  will  then  be 

recognised  by  all  as  the  Mighty  One  of  Jacob Verse  17, 

last  clause,  is  a  notabile.  TVe  do  not  understand  how  to 
take  the  expressions  that  would  indicate  a  disappearance 
of  the  solar  and  lunar  light  from  that  new  heavens  and  new 
earth  wherein  dwelleth  righteousness. — Hasten  that  blessed 
time,  0  Lord,  when  the  people  shall  all  be  righteousness  ; 
and,  0  grant  to  me  and  mine  that  we  shall  stand  with 

acceptance  on  that  day  before  the  Son  of  man This 

chapter  forms  altogether  a  most  regaling  prophecy  ;  and 
serves  greatly  to  establish  the  future  restoration  of  Israel, 
as  being  the  common  subject  both  of  the  Apocalypse  and 
the  older  prophets. 

Isaiah  lxi. — Here  the  Messiah  probably  appears  in 
His  o^vn  person.  The  day  of  vengeance  might  have  been 
applicable  to  His  first  advent,  when  He  triumphed  over 
unseen  principalities  and  powers.  We  believe  it  also  ap- 
plicable to  a  second  advent,  when  He  shall  deliver  His 
own  from  the  principalities  and  powers  of  this  world. — I 
pray  for  light  and  liberty  and  the  joy  of  Thy  salvation,  0 
God.  Cause  me  to  abound  in  the  fruits  of  righteousness, 
and  may  Thy  Church,  whereof  Thine  own  ancient  people 
will  be  the  pre-eminent  members  and  office-bearers,  be  sus- 
tained by  the  willing  support  of  a  glad  and  grateful  world. 
They  shall  be  more  than  compensated  for  all  their  afflic- 
tions, and  in  their  ovm.  land  too.  And  then  their  ser- 
vice will  not  as  heretofore  be  that  of  a  mere  outward 
and  slavish  ceremonial ;  it  will  be  in  the  ne>yness  of  the 


336  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  lxiii, 

spirit ;  it  will  be  service  according  to  tlie  law  of  love,  even 
that  law  which  God  will  put  into  their  hearts  according 
to  His  covenant  with  them,  and  which  they  will  obey  with 
all  alacrity  and  good- will,  according  to  their  covenant  with 
Him.  And  they  will  be  recognised  by  the  world  at  large 
as  the  descendants  of  that  family  through  whom  all  the 
families  of  the  earth  are  to  be  blessed. — 0  let  me  delight 
myself  in  the  abundance  of  this  peace  and  of  these  privi- 
leges— in  the  robe  of  Christ's  imputed  righteousness  ;  and 
let  the  praise  of  my  own  lips,  and  service  of  my  own  life, 
be  offered  up  continually. 

Isaiah  lxii. — A  joyful  announcement  for  the  children 
of  Israel,  but  yet  to  be  verified,  and  in  the  sight,  too,  of 
nations  and  their  kings. — My  God,  let  me  participate  in 
these  exceeding  great  and  precious  promises.  Rejoice 
over  me  for  good,  and  let  me  joy  in  God  through  Him  by 

whom  I  have  received  the  atonement Wliat  an  emphatic 

example  is  here  given  of  the  perfect  consistency  which 
obtains  between  God's  sure  and  absolute  prophecy  and  our 
earnest  prayers  for  the  fulfilment  of  it ! — Let  us  keep  not 
silence,  and  give  the  Lord  no  rest,  till  He  hath  poured  out 
the  promised  blessing.  Thus  let  us  prove  Him,  and  we 
shall  have  the  full  experience  of  His  faithfulness.  Who 
can  doubt  that  these  accomplishments  are  yet  to  come, 
in  the  face  of  God's  own  oath  that  He  will  never  more 
suffer  the  enemies  of  His  people  to  have  the  advantage 
over  them? — Work  in  us,  0  God;  and  in  the  doing  of 
Thy  prescribed  work  by  us  we  shall  have  a  very  great 
reward. 

ISAiAn  LXIII.— This  looks  a  future,  and  perhaps  the  last 


ISAIAH  Lxiv.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  337 

great  and  decisive  contest  between  Christ  and  the  enemies 

of  His  Church We  know  not  if  Edom  and  Bozrah  be 

literal  or  figurative.  Will  He  receive  no  assistance  even 
from  His  own  people? — Will  He  alone  appear  in  the 
battle? — He  comes  in  behalf  of  His  redeemed,  and  U^ 
take  vengeance  on  their  adversaries.  It  is  on  the  hous* . 
of  Israel  that  this  mercy  is  bestowed. — Put  truth,  0  God. 
into  my  inward  parts,  that  I  may  not  belie  my  profession. 
..."  The  angel  of  His  presence''  is  the  angel  of  the  covenant 
— the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Often  did  He  appear  in  the 
days  of  the  Old  Testament ;  but  they  were  stifihecked 
and  forgot  His  wondrous  manifestations.  It  is  interest- 
ing to  mark  these  early  notices  of  the  Holy  Spirit  vexed 
by  the  people,  but  given  in  large  measure  to  Moses.  As  a 
beast  fleeth  for  shelter,  so  did  the  pursued  Israelites  under 
tlieir  leader  flee  into  the  deeps  of  the  Red  Sea,  opened 
up  for  them,  and  which  proved  the  place  of  their  deliver- 
ance, onward  to  a  place  of  rest  from  their  persecutors 

"Where  are  Thy  mercies  towards  me?'' — towards  praying 
Israel,  or  the  praying  Church.  They  are  obviously  Jews 
who  are  pleading,  though  they  allege  Abraham  to  be 
ignorant  of  them ;  but  penitent  Jews,  sensible  of  their 
past  grievous  delinquencies,  and  craving  for  admission  to 
that  Church,  now  composed  of  Gentiles,  over  whom  God 
did  not  bear  the  special  nile  that  He  did  over  themselves 
in  days  of  old. 

Isaiah  lxiv. — This  is  the  Church's  prayer  for  deliver- 
ance, and  by  such  manifestations,  too,  as  might  very  pro- 
bably be  given  prior  to  its  millennial  establishment  in  the 
world.  There  may  be  a  geological  catastrophe — a  some- 
thing on  the  large  scale  similar  to  what  took  place  on  Sinai 

VOL.  III.  i' 


338  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  lxv. 

wlien  God  appeared  to  Israel. — Let  us  wait  in  faith  for 
the  coming  of  the  Son  of  God.  Let  us,  in  the  faith  of 
the  Gospel,  both  rejoice  and  work  righteousness — trust  in 
the  Lord  and  be  doing  good :  for  though  often  wroth 
against  us  because  of  our  sins,  yet  will  He  continue  to 
bless  us  and  be  merciful  to  us,  if  we  forsake  our  own  way 
and  be  mindful  of  His.  But  0  what  polluted  and  frail 
creatures  we  are  ! . . .  Verses  6  and  7  are  notabilia. — Let  me 
stir  myself  up  to  lay  hold  of  God.  He  by  His  very  com- 
plaint gives  us  the  warrant  to  appropriate  Him  as  our 

God The  pleadings  at  the  close  of  this  chapter  are 

obviously  those  of  Jews  in  captivity,  but  typical  of  a 
future  calamity  and  enlargement  awaiting  the  Church. 
The  prophecy  anterior  to  both  occasions  serves  both. 

Isaiah  lxv.  1-16. — This  chapter,  though  it  reaches  on- 
ward at  length  to  the  final  restoration  of  the  Jews,  be- 
gins with  the  prophecy  of  their  rejection,  as  exemplified 
in  the  twofold  overthrow  of  their  nation — first,  for  the 
offences  of  a  grosser  idolatry ;  and,  secondly,  for  their  treat- 
ment of  the  Messiah.     It  is  in  connexion  with  the  latter 

events  that  verse  2   is  quoted   by   Paul Yerse  5  is 

strongly  descriptive  of  the  character  of  the  Pharisees  ; 
though  in  the  second  destruction  of  Jerusalem  we  are 
taught  to  see  the  accumulated  vengeance  laid  on  the  sins 

both  of  that  and  former  generations The  offensiveness 

of  sin  to  God  is  strongly  expressed  in  verse  4;  and  should 
suggest  by  contrast  the  necessity  of  our  appeal  to  that 
sacrifice  which  arose  to  God  as  the  incense  of  a  sweet- 
smelling  savour.  Yet  a  remnant  of  Israel  will  be  saved  ; 
and  marked  will  the  difference  be  in  God's  regards  to  His 
o^\Ti,  and  to  the  gi'eat  bulk  of  the  nations,  who  will  be  the 


ISAIAH  Lxvi.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  339 

outcasts  of  a  general  dispersion — aftei*wards,  however,  to 
be  recalled,  when  all  former  troubles  shall  be  forgotten, 
and  God  shall  put  their  sins  at  as  great  distance  away 
from  them  as  the  east  is  from  the  west. 

17-25. — It  is  delightful  to  mark  how  an  expression  so 
general  as  that  of  "  the  new  heavens  and  the  new  earth,'' 
and  therefore  of  the  great  and  general  renovation,  should 
be  blended  with  the  expression  of  God's  special  kindness 
to  His  ancient  people — proving  that  the  Jews  are  to  bear 
a  predominant  part  in  the  establishment  of  the  next 
Economy.  We  are  greatly  wanting  in  the  details  of  the 
Millennium  ;  and  perhaps  from  the  want  of  Scriptural  data 
for  the  determination  of  them.  We  cannot  think  of  those 
who  have  part  in  the  first  resurrection,  that  they  will 
again  die  ;  but  will  none  of  the  righteous  die  ?  and  if  not, 
what  is  meant  by  "  the  child  dying  a  hundred  years 
old  ?"  and  in  contrast  with  him  the  sinner,  who,  though 
he  should  live  a  hundred  years,  w^ill  be  accursed?  We 
doubt  not  that  there  will  be  two  contemporaneous  socie- 
ties at  that  period — the  righteous,  and  the  wicked  who 
are  without  and  Avill  not  be  permitted  to  hurt  or  to  de- 
stroy in  all  God's  holy  mountain.  Again  will  there  be  a 
change  in  the  laws  of  animal  nature — that  the  carnivorous 
shall  cease  being  so  ;  or  are  these  things  only  figurative  ? 
The  earth,  with  its  curse  fully  removed,  will  be  greatly 
more  productive,  and  so  as  that  men  shall  not  labour  in 
vain,  as  now;  but  will  there  be  also  successive  generations 
through  men  maiTying  and  given  in  marriage  ?  And  does 
•what  is  here  said  of  the  serpent  mean  the  entire  subjuga- 
tion of  Satan  the  Prince  of  evil  ? 

Isaiah  lxvi.  1-9. — Wliat  an  enhancement  of  the  Divino 


310  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  isaiah  lxvi. 

condescension,  the  greatness  of  Him  who,  though  high, 
has  respect  unto  the  lowly. — My  God,  the  maker  of  all 
things,  have  raspect  unto  me,  who  am  also  the  work  of 

Thy  hands  ;  and  clothe  me  with  humility,  0  God The 

sacrifices  of  the  haughty  and  hypocritical  availed  them 
not ;  and  they  will  be  dealt  with  as  if  guilty  of  the  worst 
crimes,  or  affronting  God  with  forbidden  offerings.  They 
shall  become  the  victims  of  their  own  delusions,  and  all 

their  fears  shall  be  realized There  are  often  two  parties 

addressed  in  a  prophecy,  which  alternates  between  them; 
and  hence  blessings  and  curses  in  the  same  passage.  And 
so,  in  verse  5,  encouragement  is  given  to  them  who  trem- 
ble at  God's  word,  but  a  voice  of  denunciation  lifted  up 
against  their  enemies.  Terror  will  be  carried  into  the 
heart  both  of  the  city  and  temple ;  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  those  elect  whom  God  shall  avenge  speedily,  will 
experience  a  sudden  enlargement  and  delivery  at  His 
hands.  He  will  not  leave  this  great  work  unfinished  ; 
but  having  carried  it  so  far,  will  accomplish  the  increase 
and  prosperity  of  Zion. 

10-24. — Jerusalem  will  then  be  the  joy  of  the  whole 
earth,  a  dispenser  of  comfort  to  all  who  take  pleasure  in 
her  stones.  And  while  such  wdll  be  the  manifestation  of 
His  benignity  towards  the  Church,  there  will  be  indigna- 
tion towards  her  enemies.  Does  not  this  point  to  the  year 
of  the  redeemed  as  synchronizing  with  the  day  of  the 
vengeance  of  the  Lord  ? — vengeance  against  those  whose 
ungodliness  is  here  pourtrayed  by  the  worst  abominations 
of  the  idolaters  of  that  period.  It  would  seem  as  if  there 
was  to  be  a  great  dispersion  as  well  as  slaughter  of  the 
vanquished,  who  should  caiTy  back  to  the  countries  of  the 
confederate  nations  the  report  of  their  great  overthrow 


JKREMIAH  I.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  341 

in  tliat  battle,  when  the  cause  of  God  shall  be  exalted 
over  all  its  enemies.  And  does  it  not  further  seem  as 
if  the  eifect  of  the  intelligence  should  be  to  turn  the 
hearts  of  men  towards  the  Jews  of  their  respective  coun- 
tries, whom  they  would  help  and  hasten  forward  to  their 
own  land  ?  Here  the  office-bearers  are  spoken  of  in  the 
terms  of  their  ancient  institution  ;  and  it  does  stamp 
a  peculiar  and  most  interesting  character  on  these  noble 
prophecies,  now  at  their  close,  to  find  Israel  carried  for- 
ward even  to  their  final  termination,  and  the  fortunes  of 
this  selected  people  blended  with  such  enduring  generali- 
ties as  "  the  new  heavens  and  the  new  earth."'  The  de- 
struction of  enemies  is  represented  by  the  expressions  of 
our  Saviour  regarding  the  place  of  final  condemnation. 

JEREMIAH. 

Jeremiah  i. — Isaiah  has  too  much  overshadowed  Jere- 
miah, whose  book  of  prophecy  is  a  copious  repertoiy  of 
precious  things,  where  we  find  very  many  of  the  most 
weighty  and  memorable  of  our  Bible  sayings.  The  chron- 
ology of  this  work  is  precise To  "  know,"'  in  verse  5,  is 

to  select  as  a  fit  instrument  for  the  service  which  God  as- 
signed to  Jeremiah,  who  soon,  on  the  other  hand,  gives  the 
manifestation  of  a  certain  softness  and  timidity,  by  which 
he  was  obviously  characterized. — Save  me,  0  God,  from 
the  fear  of  men,  and  from  all  distrustful  anxiety  as  to 

what  I  should  say  to  them Verse  10,  where  Jeremiah 

is  spoken  to  as  having  been  constituted  the  executor  of 
what  he  was  only  the  denouncer,  lets  us  into  many  similar 

examples  in  prophecy The  almond-tree  is  remarkable 

for  the  earliness  of  its  blossoms.     Its  very  name  denotes 


342  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  jeremiah  n. 

an  eagerness  to  seize  on  the  first  opportunity  of  putting 
foiili  its  blossoms  ;   and  hence  its  propriety  as  the  symbol 

of  God's  hastening  to  the  performance  of  His  word 

BlajTiey  says  of  the  seething-pot,  that  its  face  should  have 
been  represented  as  from  the  south,  a  better  translation, 
he  says,  than  to  the  north — whence  came  the  threatened 
evil,  and  so  southward  or  in  the  same  direction  with  the 
steam  of  the  boiling  vessel To  "  set  up  a  throne ''  de- 
notes the  full  possession  and  power  which  have  been  taken 
over  it.  To  be  dismayed  at  others  is  the  high  road  to 
our  being  confounded  before  them. — Let  me  ever  hold  up  a 
resolute  face  on  the  side  of  what  I  know  to  be  right.  God 
forewarns  Jeremiah  of  the  hostility  that  he  was  to  en- 
counter in  the  discharge  of  his  commission,  but  at  the 
same  time  encourages  him  most  amply  to  brave  it.  It  is 
remarkable  of  some  of  our  most  distinguished  prophets 
that  they  were  the  most  oppressed  with  diffidence — as 
Moses,  for  example,  who  remonstrated  against  his  mission 
even  as  Jeremiah  did. 

Jeremiah  it.  1-13. — It  is  important  to  remark  of  verse 
2,  that  the  kindness  and  loA^e  there  spoken  of  are  those  of 
God  to  Israel,  for  there  was  veiy  little  on  the  part  of 
Israel  towards  God.  Israel  was  a  hallowed  thing  to  Him, 
His  first-fruits  from  among  mankind,  and  selected  with 
the  view  to  a  future  blessing  on  aU  the  families  of  the 
earth.  He  then  remonstrates  with  them  on  their  un- 
worthy return  for  all  His  goodness What  a  graphic 

description  is  here  given  of  the  wilderness  I  It  was  their 
transition  thence  into  the  land  of  Canaan,  for  which  they 
should  have  been  everlastingly  gratefid  ;  and  the  charge 
against  them  is  that  they  forgot  and  trampled  on  all  their 


JEREMIAH  n.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  343 

obligations.  The  great  fountain-head  of  the  natural 
transgression  was  the  corruption  of  the  priesthood.  The 
iniquity  of  official  men  is  the  prolific  source  of  all  sorts  of 
degeneracy.  There  was  a  departure  from  God  on  the 
part  of  the  ministers  of  religion,  and  such  a  disregard  to 
the  law  or  to  its  documents  and  records,  that  they  knew 
not  God,  The  appeal  is  made  to  the  habit  of  idolatrous 
nations,  who  swerved  not  from  their  gods — although 
Israel  renounced  the  true  God  who  had  so  signalized 
them  by  His  favour  —  Chittim  being  Europe,  and  Kedar 
being  in  Arabia,  verse  10  is  tantamount  to  the  affirma- 
tion, that  from  west  to  east  there  was  no  such  enormity 
as  that  into  which  God's  own  people  had  fallen.  The 
complaint  against  them  is  \erj  strongly  put ;  and  verse 
13  is  one  of  Jeremiah's  most  illustrious  notabilia. — My 
God,  how  I  am  myself  reproved  by  it.  Keep  me  by  the 
fountain  of  living  waters.  Give  me  the  water  of  life 
freely.  Recall  me  from  the  idle  employment  of  seeking 
enjoyment  from  the  perishable  creature,  from  the  broken 
cisterns  that  hold  no  water. 

14<-24. — Israel  was  not  constituted  a  slave,  but  was 
adopted  by  God,  as  a  child  of  his  own  family,  and  home- 
bom — and  how  then  comes  he  to  be  the  prey  of  enemies  ? 
He  is  invaded  on  all  sides  and  plundered — nay,  his  cities 
burnt  up  so  as  to  be  left  without  an  inhabitant.  More 
especially  did  Egypt  obtain  a  signal  victory  over  them 
when  Josiah  was  defeated  and  slain  ;  and  afterwards  did 
Babylon  complete  the  overthrow  of  their  nation.  "Well 
might  it  be  said  of  Egypt  that  it  broke  the  crown  of  their 
head  when  Josiah  fell  in  battle.  But  it  was  of  their  own 
bringing  on:  it  was  not  chargeable  upon  God.  Him 
they  had  forsaken ;  and  as  an  evidence  and  example  of 


314  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  jeremiah  ii. 

hewing  out  broken  cisterns  for  themselves,  they  repaired 
to  the  rivers  of  Egypt  and  Babylon — preferring  these  to 
the  living  waters,  or  exchanging  the  worship  of  the  true 
Grod  for  that  of  the  gods  of  the  nations,  and  who  in  pun- 
ishment for  their  idolatry,  obtained  the  power  over  them. 
For  wickedness  read  adversity,  and  then  it  makes  a  clearer 
sense,  that  this  would  bring  them  to  a  sense  of  their  back- 
slidings. — Grive  me,  0  Lord,  to  feel  how  evil  and  bitter  a 
thing  ungodliness  is ;  and  put  Thy  fear  within  me.  0 
save  me  from  the  headlong  force  of  my  own  propensities  ! 
...  By  another  reading  of  verse  20,  we  are  told  that  it  was 
Israel  which  burst  their  own  bands,  not  God  who  had  re- 
leased them  from  their  righteous  obligations.  And  what 
a  degeneracy  ensued !  as  is  strikingly  expressed  in  verse 
21 — a  notabile  ;  and  so  also  is  verse  22,  which  speaks  to 
us  most  powerfully  of  the  inveteracy  of  our  native  sinful- 
ness, that  no  superficial  application  can  wash  away,  and 
which  withstands  all  the  expedients  and  glosses  of  human 
art.  Blayney  translates  it — a  swift  dromedary  taking  to 
company  with  her  a  wild  ass,  and  that  cannot  be  turned 
from  her  gratification  any  more  than  Israel  from  the 
idolatry  on  which  they  are  bent.  But  the  animal,  after 
its  season  of  appetency  is  over,  returns  and  is  easily 
found,  far  more  readily  indeed  than  stubborn  and  re- 
bellious Israel. 

25-37. — Israel  is  here  warned  against  running  herself 
into  captivity  by  her  misconduct,  to  which  she  would  be 
taken  unshod,  and  in  the  agonies  of  sore  privation  ;  and 
whereas  she  alleges  that  there  is  no  remedy,  it  is  all 
chargeable  on  her  own  idolatrous  afiection.  Therefore 
alone  it  is,  that  their  doom  is  inevitable,  after  which  per- 
haps they  will  send  forth  a  returning  cry,  even  as  the 


JEREMIAH  III.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  345 

wild  dromedary  comes  back  when  her  waywardness  is  over. 
But  the  true  God  expostulates  and  commits  them  back  to 
the  gods  of  their  own  choosing,  numerous  as  their  cities — • 
so  wholly  were  they  given  over  to  idolatry.  All  the  dis- 
cipline they  got  was  thrown  away  upon  them  ;  and  the 
righteous  who  had  been  sent  to  them  they  themselves  put 

to  death Verse  31  I  have  long  regarded  as  a  notabile. 

— My  God,  be  Thou  neither  a  wilderness  nor  land  of  dark- 
ness to  me,  but  be  Thou  peopled  to  my  view  with  all  the 
interest  and  variety  and  loveliness  of  Thy  works,  with  all 
that  can  delight  or  solemnize  in  the  contemplation  of 
highest  goodness.  Be  Thou  the  home  of  my  habitual  and 
fondest  contemplations,  0  Lord.  Neither  let  me  feel  that 
I  am  my  own,  and  far  less  my  own  master ;  but  be  sub- 
ject to  Thee  in  all  things.  Be  Thou  unto  me,  0  God,  as 
ornaments  and  attire  to  those  who  set  their  hearts  upon 
these  things  :  I  would  set  my  heart  upon  God — I  want  to 
know  what  delight  in  God  is.  My  God,  Thou  knowest 
what  I  pray  against — the  doom  being  pronounced  upon  me 
which  the  unrepented  sin  of  verse  34  is  sure  to  bring 
down.  Save  me  from  the  guilt  of  having  offended  any  of 
Christ's  little  ones  ;  and  let  me  henceforth  recall  every 
wandering  desire,  and  live  according  to  the  strictest 
methods  of  purity  and  self-government.  Above  all,  let 
the  principle  of  this  be  in  my  heart,  and  let  the  holiness 
be  established  there,  without  which  I  cannot  see  God. 

Jeremiah  hi.  1-14. — God  here  gives  proof  of  a  conde- 
scension and  willingness  for  reconciliation  with  unfaithful 
Israel,  which  shows  that  His  ways  are  not  like  man's 
ways.  The  abominations  and  guilt  of  the  people  are  very 
strongly  depicted.     Temporal  judgments  are  represented 

p2 


34G  DAILY  SCRrPTURE  READINGS.         jeremiah  iti. 

as  following  on  the  back  of  their  various  enormities .... 
Verse  4,  and  the  first  half  of  verse  5,  seem  words  put  into 
the  mouth  of  Israel — as  if  inquiring  the  change  that  had 
come  over  the  dealings  of  Him  who  formerly  was  their 
Guide  and  Guardian.  The  last  half  of  verse  5  seems  the 
reply  of  God,  vindicating  His  o\\ti  treatment  of  a  people 
who  had  both  said  evil  and  done  it — had  persevered  with 
their  iniquities  in  opposition  to  all  His  warnings.  God 
then  addresses  Himself  to  Jeremiah,  and  gives  a  more 
particular  narration  of  Israel's  misdoings  towards  Him, 
and  of  His  doings  towards  them.  He  had  persisted  in 
His  entreaties  for  a  reconciliation,  but  they  refused.  Nor 
did  Judah  take  the  warning  of  what  she  had  seen  regard- 
ing Israel,  in  that  God  rejected  them  because  of  their 
impenitency.  The  idolatry  of  Judah  sank  down  to  the 
image-worship  of  wood  and  stone.  It  would  seem  as  if 
Judah  had  outdone  the  provocations  of  Israel,  by  super- 
adding the  guilt  of  hypocrisy  to  that  of  rebellion.  There- 
fore does  he  direct  his  words  towards  the  north,  where 
Israel  had  been  taken  captive,  and  entreats  their  return- 
ing— and  holding  out  the  proiFers  of  pardon,  would  they 
but  confess  and  forsake  their  sins. — The  end  of  verse  12 
seems  a  reply  to  the  question  of  verse  5. — They  scattered, 
or  had  been  liberal  of  their  ways  to  strangers — ^taking  up 
and  complying  w^ith  the  shameful  idolatries  of  all  whom 
they  fell  in  with.  And  yet,  in  the  face  of  all  this,  does 
God  persevere  in  beseeching  their  return  to  Him  as  their 
husband,  although  they  had  broken  the  marriage  vow. 

15-25. — Verse  15  is  an  eminent  notabile.  The  promise 
it  contains  is  an  exceedingly  precious  one. — My  God,  ful- 
fil it  upon  our  own  land.  We  pray  for  an  efficient,  evan- 
gelical, and  upright  ministry  in  the  midst  of  us ;  and  let 


JEREMIAH  IV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS  317 

theirs  witlial  be  an  intelligent  Christianity.  The  accom- 
plishment, however,  is  still  in  reserve,  and  is  spoken  of 
more  in  the  way  of  prophecy  than  of  promise.  It  points 
to  a  time  when  there  shall  be  the  throne  instead  of  the 
ark — the  metropolitan  power  in  Jerusalem — and  when  it 
shall  be  resorted  to  by  the  nations  of  a  regenerated  world. 
Surely  it  could  not  be  said  in  the  days  of  the  second 
temple,  although  the  ark  had  then  ceased,  that  there  was 
any  such  universal  resort  to  Judea ;  or  yet  that  Israel  and 
Judah  had  become  united,  as  we  expect  they  shall  be. 
But  the  question  is — how  can  this  reconciliation  and  rein- 
statement take  place  ?  and  the  answer — by  a  repentance 
and  return  on  the  part  of  my  people.  No  doubt  their 
departure  was  a  very  grievous  one — but  they  became  sen- 
sible of  this ;  and  Grod's  encouragements  and  invitations 
met  in  counterpart  with  their  godly  sorrow ;  and  so  they 
renounced  their  dependence  on  all  but  the  living  and  ti-ue 
God.  Their  eyes  are  now  opened  to  the  real  cause  of  the 
great  national  sufferings  which  had  been  laid  upon  them. 
They  were  ashamed,  and  confessed,  and  turned  unto  the 
Lord.  Doubtless  all  this  is  yet  to  come.  They  have  not 
yet  looked  to  Him  whom  they  have  pierced,  and  mourned 
for  Him  as  one  mourneth  for  a  first-born.  But  they  will 
at  length ;  and  when  ih.ej  shall  have  returned  unto  God, 
God  will  return  unto  them. 

Jeremiah  iv.  1-9. — God  urges  His  entreaties  for  the 
return  of  Israel,  and  more  now  in  the  way  of  exhortation 
for  the  present  than  of  prophecy  for  the  future.  At  this 
time  they  were  still  in  their  own  land,  prior  to  the  cap- 
tivity by  Nebuchadnezzar;  and  the  promise  is,  that  if 
they  will  only  return,  they  shall  not  be  removed.     The 


348  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         jeremiah  iv. 

"  return  unto  me''  signifies  a  change  from  the  false  to  the 
true  worship,  instead  of  a  change  from  one  illusion  to  an- 
other. Had  they  but  hearkened  to  the  voice  of  their 
prophet,  not  only  might  they  have  continued  to  inlierit 
the  land  ;  but  the  promised  blessing  in  and  through  them 
to  all  the  families  of  the  earth,  might  have  been  realized 
without  those  sad  des.tructions  and  dispersions  which  they 

actually  undenvent To  "break  up  the  fallow  ground'" 

might  signify  to  uproot  the  evil  habits  which  grow  like 
weeds  on  the  soil  of  the  heart,  now  to  be  circumcised  and 
planted  anew  with  the  Lord's  planting.  But  all  these  ad- 
monitions, with  their  accompanying  promises,  were  thrown 
away  on  that  ungrateful  and  stiffnecked  generation,  and  so 
the  fury  of  the  Lord  came  upon  them,  because  of  the  evil 
of  their  doings.  And  accordingly  Jeremiah  was  appointed 
to  make  declaration  of  this,  which  he  did  in  effect,  by 
telling  them  what  they  would  do  in  the  event  of  their 
great  coming  invasion — that  is,  flee  to  their  defenced 
cities,  and  rally  the  people  towards  the  capital,  and  make 
no  delay,  but  flee  behind  their  fortifications,  because  of  a 
great  and  overwhelming  inroad  that  was  to  set  in  upon 
them  from  the  north.  The  destroyer  of  nations  was  upon 
his  way,  and  would  desolate  the  land.  They  had  done 
nothing  to  turn  off  the  fierce  anger  of  the  Lord,  and  so  it 
turned  against  them.  The  hearts  of  all  their  great  men, 
whether  priests  or  nobles,  failed  them  in  this  day  of  awful 
calamity. — 0  God,  avert  such  a  judgment  from  our  own 
sinful  nation  ;  and  as  this  year  closes  upon  us  with  appal- 
ling famine  within,  and  rumours  of  war  from  without,  do 
Thou  brighten,  if  it  be  Thy  blessed  will,  the  year  that  is 
now  coming  in,  by  the  return  of  our  rulers  to  the  purity 
of  our  Scriptural  fixith ;  and  the  ways  of  the  people  so 


JEREMIAH  IV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  349 

pleasing  God  that  all  Thy  chastisements  might  he  with- 
drawn, and  all  our  enemies  he  at  peace  with  us. 

January  f  1847. 

10-19. — Jeremiah  has  here  the  boldness  to  remonstrate 
with  God,  in  that  He  promised  peace,  which  will  he  made 
good  ultimately ;  hut  not  without  great  previous  sins  and 
chastisements.  And  therefore  a  scorching  wind,  not  of  sa- 
lubrious quality,  hut  for  the  direct  infliction  of  disease  and 
pain,  will  come  upon  them.  The  invader  will  make  speedy 
entrance  into  their  borders  if  they  rej^ent  not,  and  do  not 
cleanse  themselves.  The  day  of  grace  and  entreaty  is  still 
lengthened  out  to  them ;  and  the  expostulation  of  verse 
14  is  a  notabile. — My  God,  save  me  from  the  vile  and 
vain  thoughts  that  lodge  within  my  heart ....  The  "  watch- 
ers''  of  verse  16  are  besiegers,  who  keep  sentiy  around 
the  beset  places.  This  is  God's  justification  in  reply  to 
His  prophet.  All  this  affliction  of  the  people  is  the  fruit 
of  their  OTvm  way  and  their  own  doings :  and  such  being 
the  real  state  of  the  matter,  Jeremiah  is  obliged  to  ac- 
quiesce, and  vents  forth  those  characteristic  lamentations 
which  so  abound  throughout  his  writings. 

20-31. — And  so  he  dwells  in  description  on  the  calami- 
ties which  are  coming  over  the  land.  The  ravages  and 
insignia  of  war  are  forcibly  depicted.  And  all  this  he- 
cause  of  the  people's  sottishness — their  defect  in  godliness 

being  closely  allied  with  the  defect  of  intellect There 

is  a  counterpart  to  verse  22  in  Rom.  xvi.  19 — "wise  unto 
that  which  is  good,  and  simple  concerning  evil.''  In  de- 
scribing the  chaotic  state  of  the  land  when  desolated, 
some  of  the  images  are  taken  from  the  primitive  chaos  in 
the  Book  of  Genesis — the  earth  being  then  without  form 


350  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  jeremiah  v. 

and  void,  and  darkness  being  on  the  face  of  the  deep. 
There  is  the  highly  poetical  in  the  hills  moving  lightly, 
and  the  birds  of  heaven  disappearing.  Altogether  it  is  a 
fearful  and  terrible  representation  of  the  Divine  vengeance 
upon  Israel — a  vengeance  from  which  He  would  not  draw 
back,  yet  would  not  carry  it  on  to  a  full  and  final  destruc- 
tion. The  movements  of  those  defeated  and  put  to  flight 
are  very  graphically  rendered — going  into  thickets,  climb- 
ing up  upon  rocks.  The  abandonment  of  the  cities  is 
complete  ;  and  then  of  how  little  avail  will  all  their  for- 
mer luxuries  and  allurements  prove  to  them,  after  the 
enemies  with  whom  they  amalgamated  in  their  idolatries 
shall  have  got  them  in  their  power  ? ...  To  "  rent  their 
faces  "  is  translated  by  Blayney  to  "  distend  their  eyes  " 
• — it  being  the  practice  then  to  paint  the  eye-brows,  so  as 
to  give  the  appearance  of  larger  eyes.  Instead  of  being 
caressed  and  sought  after  for  her  clianns,  Zion  is  reduced 
to  the  attitude  of  a  helpless  supplicant,  calling  on  her 
murderers,  with  outstretched  hands,  to  spare  her. 

Jeremiah  v.  1-9. — There  is  here  a  forcible  description 
of  the  wickedness  of  Jerusalem,  and  of  its  provocations 
against  the  Lord.  And  He  makes  the  same  challenge 
regarding  it  that  he  did  of  Sodom  in  His  conversation  with 
Abraham.  If  even  one  righteous  person  could  have  been 
found  in  the  city  He  would  have  pardoned  it.  There  was 
hypocrisy  in  swearing  by  the  Lord — yet  obeying  Him  not. 
And  so  Jeremiah  acquiesces  in  the  charge  of  Him  whose 
delight  is  truth  in  the  inward  parts.  They  grew  harder 
and  worse  under  all  their  corrections.  At  the  same  time 
the  prophet  sought  to  alleviate  the  matter,  by  suggesting 
the  possibility  of  its  being  chiefly  the  poor  and  ignorant 


JKREMiAH  V.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  351 

who  had  thus  transgressed  and  erred,  and  that  possibly 
better  thmgs  might  be  found  among  the  upper  classes. 
But  these  too  had  gone  as  far  astray,  and  therefore,  there 
was  no  let  in  the  way  of  God's  vengeance.  The  lion,  the 
invader,  should  enter  and  lay  them  waste.  The  harlots' 
houses  are  their  idolatrous  temples.  The  likeness  of  the 
two  sins  which  are  here  and  everywhere  else  represented 
as  analogous,  might  well  impress  upon  us  the  enormity  in 
heaven's  sight  of  those  evil  indulgences,  regarding  which 
many  feel  so  lightly. 

10-19. — The  prophet  is  told  to  proclaim  a  coming  de- 
struction in  the  form  of  himself  being  the  agent,  and 
bidden  to  destroy  with  his  own  hand.  The  battlements 
of  Jerusalem  were  not  the  Lord's,  in  the  sense  of  Jerusalem 
itself  being  wholly  given  over  to  idolatry.  In  all  these 
commissions  of  vengeance,  however,  there  is  a  proviso  in- 
serted that  it  shall  not  be  the  vengeance  of  a  total  exter- 
mination. He  will  not  make  a  full  end — partly  because 
He  had  more  sufferings  in  reserve  for  them.  A  remnant 
shall  be  saved.  They  who  said — It  is  not  He,  denied  the 
true  God  and  His  prophets,  or  that  they  have  received 
the  word  that  thus  and  thus  it  should  be  done  unto  them. 
But  this  word  should  have  awful  significancy  and  effect, 
consuming  the  people  like  fuel  by  the  breath  of  God's 
mouth.  The  prophet  having  said  it,  is  equivalent  to  its 
being  done ;  and  so  they  are  told  sometimes  not  to  speak 
the  things  predicted,  but  as  if  themselves  were  the  agents 
to  do  them.  All  this  was  to  take  effect  by  an  invasion 
from  the  ancient  kingdom  of  Babylon,  the  death-bearing 
quivers  of  whose  warriors  should  soon  be  brought  to  bear 
upon  their  land — which  would  soon  be  wasted  into  famine, 
and  all  because  they  had  forsaken  the  God  of  Israel,  and 


352  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  jfremiah  vi. 

served  the  gods  of  other  countries,  into  wliicli  therefore 
they  should  be  carried  Ly  a  sort  of  countei-part  retribu- 
tion. They  had  chosen  to  ser^^e  strange  gods  in  their  own 
land — therefore  should  they  be  forced  to  serve  strangers 
in  a  land  that  was  not  theirs. 

20-31. — "  The  eyes  which  see  not,  and  ears  which  hear 
not/'  form  an  expression  kept  up  till  the  days  of  the  New 
Testament.  Wliat  a  sanction  we  have  throughout  Scrip- 
ture for  contemplating  God  in  His  works,  or  for  Natural 
Theology ;  and  for  grounding  our  charges  of  ungodliness 
on  the  neglect  of  its  considerations.  And  there  was  an  aw- 
ful perversion  of  justice  in  these  days — men  entrapped  and 
sworn  against  and  destroyed  by  means  of  false  witnesses 
and  corrupt  judges.  Such  flagrant  breaches  of  social  in- 
tegrity cause  the  cry  of  the  oppressed  to  reach  up  to  the 
heavens,  where  it  enters  the  ears  of  the  Lord  of  Sabaoth. — 
My  God,  we  pray  not  for  vengeance,  but  for  the  reforma- 
tion of  those  children  of  iniquity  who  enrich  themselves, 

even  in  our  day,  at  the  expense  of  truth  and  justice 

Verse  31  is  an  eminent  notabile — and  how  applicable  to 
these  times,  when  a  lax  doctrine  is  promulgated,  and  care- 
less ungodly  hearers  are  quite  satisfied  therewith — loving 
to  have  it  so,  and  not  liking  to  be  disturbed  by  the  high 
demands  of  a  spiritual  religion  on  their  hearts  and  habits. 

Jeremiah  vi.  1-9. — There  is  the  warning  here  of  a 
great  coming  invasion.  There  is  another  sense  than 
"  liken''  for  the  Hebrew  word  in  verse  2 — to  destroy,  or 
decree  to  destroy ;  and  this  seems  the  most  aj^plicablc 
meaning  at  this  place.  The  shepherds  and  their  flocks 
are  understood  to  be  the  captains  and  their  troops  of  the 
hostile  army.     They  are  represented  in  verse  4  as  called 


jjSREMiAH  VI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  353 

upon  to  the  enterprise,  and  so  resolved  upon  it  that  while 
they  lament  the  approach  of  evening,  they  will  go  to  the 
execution  even  though  it  should  be  night.  Their  commis- 
sion against  Jerusalem  is  particularly  described  ;  and  the 
reason  for  it  given,  because  of  its  abounding  oppression 
and  iniquity — ^being  as  prolific  of  wickedness  as  a  foun- 
tain is  of  water.  And  yet  while  the  stroke  has  not  fallen 
upon  them,  there  is  the  voice  of  admonition  lifted  in  their 
hearing  by  the  prophet.  There  are  still  space  and  oppor- 
tunity given  for  repentance The  command  in  verse  9  is 

addressed  to  the  invaders,  who  are  called  upon  thoroughly 
to  glean  Israel,  and  rather  than  leave  any,  turn  again  and 
take  ofi"  all  that  had  been  missed.     (See  ch.  lii.  28-30.) 

10-20. — The  prophet  complains  of  the  insensibility  of 
the  people  to  all  his  threatenings,  which  causes  him  to 
redouble  them — moving  his  righteous  indignation  still 
more,  or  rather  stimulating  him  to  fresh  endeavours,  that 
he  might  impress  and  terrify  them  out  of  the  evil  of  their 
ways.  He  may  be  said  to  represent  the  will  and  mind  of 
God ;  and  in  this  view  his  being  "  full  of  the  fury  of  the 
Lord,''  and  his  "weariness  with  holding  in,''  are  remarkable 
expressions. — Then  follows  a  most  illustrious  notabile  in 
verse  14. — My  God,  save  me  from  the  ruinous  tranquillity 
of  those  who  say,  Peace,  peace,  w^hen  there  is  no  peace. 
Let  me  not  heal  my  own  hurt  or  the  hurt  of  others 
slightly.  0  may  I  think  with  good  effect  of  my  abomi- 
nations :  and  grant.  Almighty  Father,  that  I  might  ever 
square  my  creed  and  my  conduct  by  the  rule  of  Thine 
own  original  word — the  good  old  way  in  all  its  primitive 
simplicity,  and  unvitiated  by  modern  changes  or  innova- 
tions. What  another  famous  notabile  is  verse  16! — The 
people,  however,  remained  obstinate  and  perverse  under 

VOL.  HI.  2  a 


351  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         jeremiah  vrr. 

all  these  urgencies.  The  evil  that  is  to  be  brought  upon 
them  is  here  stated  to  be  the  fruit  of  their  thoughts. 
Give  me  to  rule  the  inner  man,  to  rule  the  heart  with  all 
diligence — seeing  that  out  of  it  are  the  issues  of  life. 
God  rejected  all  the  outward  offerings  of  a  people  so  cor- 
inipt  in  principle  and  feeling  as  they  were. 

21-30. — They  will,  therefore,  be  dealt  with  in  the  way 
of  punishment.  They  will  fall  in  with  enemies  before 
whom  old  and  young  and  whole  bands  of  companionship 
shall  be  laid  low.  This  invasion  from  the  north  is  often 
denounced  upon  them,  and  with  variety  of  description 
having  in  it  great  power.  The  cavalry  are  here  especially 
spoken  of     The  utter  insecurity  of  a  land  thus  ovennin 

with  hostile  forces  is  strikingly  delineated The  tower 

and  the  fortress  are  differently  rendered  by  Blayney. 
"  I  have  appointed  thee  to  make  assay  among  my  people 
as  to  the  gold  thereof '' — a  meaning  that  agrees  well  with 
the  following  context.  Tlie  verse  at  this  rate  might  be 
addressed  to  Jeremiah,  whose  earnest  remonstrances  and 
warnings  if  they  told  on  a  few,  might  detach  these  from 
the  great  mass  of  the  community,  who  by  standing  their 
ground  against  the  prophet  made  abundant  demonstration 
of  their  own  worthlessness — so  that  his  word,  the  savour 
it  might  be  of  life  unto  the  life  of  some,  was  the  savour 
of  death  unto  the  death  of  many.  To  sustain  the  consist- 
ency of  this  interpretation  the  more,  the  "  walking  with 
slanders'*  is  understood  to  mean  dealing  in  a  fraudulent 
currency.  And  the  upshot  of  their  trial  is  that  they  are 
found  to  be  reprobate  silver. 

Jeremiah  vii.  1-10. — Never  was  there  greater  earnestness 
or  importunity  of  warning  than  that  wherewith  Jeremiah 


JEREMIAH  Yii.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  355 

plied  the  cliildren  of  Israel.  And  he  took  the  most  con- 
spicuous and  frequented  places,  too,  for  the  promulga- 
tion of  his  message  from  God — the  gate  of  the  temple. 
His  call  upon  them  was  for  a  moral  reformation,  and  that 
they  should  not  place  a  false  confidence  in  their  temple 
or  in  its  ritual  services : — "  Are  these,''  as  if  pointing  to 

the  buildings  of  the  temple  within  his  view The  "  lying 

words''  are  those  of  false  prophets,  who  taught  them  to 
place  a  false  reliance  upon  these.  It  is  a  noble  and  vir- 
tuous remonstrance  against  these  words  and  their  conse- 
quent enormities  which  Jeremiah  here  lifts  up  in  the  ears 
of  his  countrymen.  They  frequented  the  temple  even  in 
the  midst  of  their  idolatries,  and  with  a  sort  of  predesti- 
narian  orthodoxy,  tried  to  blunt  the  criminality  of  their 

doings Verse  10  would  do  admirably  as  a  text  against 

Antinomians  and  Fatalists. 

11-21. — The  frequenters  of  the  temple,  who  stole  and 
murdered  and  committed  adultery,  made  it  a  den  of  rob- 
bers. But  God  bids  them  look  at  Shiloh,  once  privileged 
as  Jerusalem  now  was,  yet  that  prevented  not  the  defeat 
of  Israel  in  Samuel's  time  when  the  Ark  was  taken,  nor 
the  present  desolation  of  the  plain  and  country  around 

it,  nor  the  captivity  of  the  ten  tribes Of  Jeremiah  it 

might  with  special  propriety  be  said,  that  "he  rose  up 
early  and  spake  unto  the  people."  Jerusalem,  which  an- 
swered him  not,  was  therefore  made  to  share  in  the  cala- 
mities of  Shiloh.  Judali  should  fare  as  Israel  had  done 
in  being  cast  out  and  made  captive.  There  is  a  point  be- 
yond which  prayer  is  vain — a  sin  unto  death  ;  after  which 
the  cry  of  the  transgressor  himself  and  the  intercessions 
of  others  are  alike  unavailing.  It  marks  the  consumma- 
tion of  their  fate  when  Jeremiah  is  forbidden  to  pray  for 


356  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         jeremiah  vir. 

Israel The  idolatry  whicli  is  here  specified,  with  its 

preparations  and  services,  is  very  appalling — an  idolatry- 
most  provoking  to  a  holy  God,  but  to  themselves  most 
ruinous  and  confounding.  And  so  God  pours  upon  them 
His  maledictions  of  vengeance — all  of  which  were  exe- 
cuted to  the  full The  meaning  of  verse  21  is,  that  they 

might  cease  their  offerings  and  sacrifices,  and  eat  the 
victims,  for  that  God  had  now  given  them  up,  and  wanted 
no  more  oblations  at  their  hands. 

22-34. — He  appeals  to  the  state  of  matters  in  the  wil- 
derness, or  during  the  period  of  Israel's  transition  from 
Egypt  to  Canaan.  There  was  then  no  regular  ritual 
service ;  but  there  was  then,  as  at  all  times,  the  moral 
regimen  of  obedience,  paramount  to  all  other  obedience. 
They  acquitted  themselves,  however,  miserably  ill  under 
this  regimen  ;  and  this  perverse  rebellious  spirit  of  their 
race  was  kept  up  after  their  settlement  in  the  promised 
land,  and  in  opposition  to  all  the  warnings  of  all  the 

prophets "  Rising   up   early,''  a  frequent  expression 

of  Jeremiah,  frequently  repeated  by  him,  and  afterwards 
quoted  by  some  one  of  the  later  prophets.  It  is  re- 
markable that  in  the  certain  foreknowledge  of  their  dis- 
obedience, yet  God  sends  messengers  to  recall  them — tell- 
ing these  messengers,  too,  the  ultimate  failure  of  their 
own  errand,  or  at  least  that  it  was  but  the  savour  of  death 
unto  death.     And  so  he  comes  forth  with  his  predictive 

denunciations  against  them To  "  cut  off  the  hair '  was 

an  act  of  mourning.  Tophet  was  the  place  where  the 
horrid  sacrifices  of  children  were  performed  ;  and  its  name 
is  supposed  to  be  taken  from  the  drums  employed  in 
drowning  their  cries.  So  far  from  coming  into  the  heart 
of  the  Lord  to  be  thus  served,  it  was  to  him  an  utter 


JEREMIAH  VIII.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  357 

abomination ;  and  lience  followed  a  signal  vengeance  upon 
the  land. 

Jeremiah  viii.  1-11. — The  beginning  of  this  chapter 
flows  continuously  from  the  end  of  the  last.  When  Jeru- 
salem was  taken,  the  sepulchres  of  the  grandees  would  be 
ransacked  for  treasure  ;  and  their  bones  left  in  a  state  of 
exposure.  They  would,  though  fallen,  have  risen  again — 
God  would,  though  turned  away,  have  returned — had  it 
not  been  for  the  utter  incorrigibleness  of  the  people. 
Theirs  was  a  perpetual  backsliding  ;  and  how  strongly 
it  expresses  the  bias  to  evil — that  "  every  man  turned  to 
his  course  as  a  horse  to  the  battle.''  They  were  more 
blind  to  the  signs  of  the  times  than  irrational  creatures. 
The  law  was  vain,  not  through  its  imperfection,  but  by 
reason  of  the  perversity  of  its  subjects.  (Rom.  viii.  3.) . . . 
How  strikingly  applicable  is  verse  9  to  our  rulers !  By 
casting  the  word  of  the  Lord  away  from  them,  they  have 
cast  away  all  true  and  solid  wisdom ;  and  they  are  too 
much  countenanced  in  their  irreligious  policy  by  ecclesi- 
astical men. — Then  follows  a  repetition  of  the  illustrious 
notabile  in  ch.  vi.  14 — alike  applicable  to  political  and 
moral  ills.  What  superficial  remedies  are  now  proposed 
for  our  social  disorders  ! 

12-22. — Jeremiah  continues  to  vindicate  the  threaten- 
ing which  he  pours  forth  on  Israel — alleging  their  utter 
shamelessness   and   moral   insensibility   to   the   grossest 

wickedness To  "fall  among  them  that  fair'  is  to  fall 

one  after  another.  "  Why  do  we  sit  still,"  or  remain  in 
unfortified  places  ;  let  us  seek  to  the  cities ;  but  even 
there  what  can  we  do  but  wait  in  passiveness  for  what  is 
coming  ? . . .  The  picture  here   given  of  an  invasion;  and 


358  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  jeremiah  ix. 

ruthless  invaders,  is  a  most  vivid  and  appalling  one.  They 
could  not  by  any  skill  be  turned  from  their  purposes  of 
destruction.  Poor  Jeremiah,  with  all  the  severity  of  his 
denunciations,  had  a  heart  full  of  pity  for  the  miseries  of 
his  people.  The  author  of  the  Book  of  Lamentations 
appears  in  some  of  these  verses.  He  speaks  of  the  case 
as  now  beyond  remedy  ;  and  verse  20,  expressive  of  this, 
is  indeed  a  most  striking  notabile,  closely  and  practically 
applicable  to  the  case  of  men  who  have  lived  to  knowledge 
without  God  and  without  Christ  in  the  world.  But  what 
a  blessed  counterpart  to  this  is  the  affirmative  reply  to 
the  question  in  the  last  verse — precious  to  the  heart  of 
every  earnest  inquirer,  when  he  turns  him  to  the  great 
Physician  of  souls,  and  gets  the  medicine,  the  balm  of 
Gilead,  applied  to  the  hurt  of  his  soul. — My  God,  let  me 
not  incur  the  doom  of  those  who  stand  beyond  the  reach 
of  salvation  ;  but  give  me  now  to  seek  unto  Him  who  is 

the  fountain  of  spiritual  health Verse  22 — an  illustrious 

notabile. 

Jeremiah  ix.  1-11. — Here  Jeremiah  appears  in  his  dis- 
tinctive character  as  a  man  full  of  patriotic  sensibility  for 
his  degraded  and  doomed  countrymen.  The  whole  poetry 
of  the  Book  of  Lamentations  breaks  forth  in  the  two  first 
verses  of  this  chapter.  There  is  a  pathos  in  his  aspira- 
tions after  solitude  and  rest,  away  from  his  people  in  a 
lodging-place  of  the  far-oif  wilderness.  But  still  higher 
than  this  is  his  moral  indignancy  at  their  vices. — My  God, 
help  mine  own  infirmity,  that  I  may  be  valiant  for  the 

truth  upon  the  earth It  is  a  fell  description  which  he 

gives,  not  of  their  ungodliness  alone,  but  of  their  utter 
selfishness  and  disregard  for  each  other.    The  service  of 


JEBBMIAH IX.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  359 

sin  is  indeed  a  slavery ;  and  the  constant  need  that  there 
is  of  propping  up  one  iniquity  by  another  makes  it  alto- 
gether a  most  toilsome  policy,  with  no  inward  satisfaction 
to  sustain  them  under  it "  An  arrow  shot  out''  is  ren- 
dered by  Blayney  "  the  arrow  of  a  murderer/'     Observe 

what  a  hatred  God  bears  to  all  deceitfulness In  verse 

10  read — "  On  the  mountains  will  I  bring  up  weeping,  and 
wailing."  This  makes  all  the  three  verses,  9,  10,  and 
11,  to  be  a  continuous  and  direct  utterance  from  God 
Himself 

12-26. — Jeremiah  put  the  question,  and  answers  it  in 
effect,  that  he  himself  is  the  person  to  whom  the  reason 
of  Israel's  calamities  has  been  entrusted,  and  he  declares 
it  accordingly.  It  was  because  they  had  forsaken  God's 
law  and  gone  after  other  gods,  of  whom  they  were  taught 
by  their  fathers,  who  it  seems  delivered  to  them  the  les- 
sons of  an  idolatrous  education.  And  Jeremiah,  after 
denouncing  upon  them  the  coming  desolations,  stands 
forth  in  the  capacity  of  a  mourner,  and  pours  out  all  the 

eloquence   of  his   patriotic   sorrows "  Thus  saith   the 

Lord,"  in  verse  22,  is  thought  to  be  an  interpolation  ;  and 
the  word  for  "speak"  might  also  be  translated  "destroyed,'' 
which  might  be  made  to  govern  the  "  young  men  "  in  the 
latter  clause  of  the  preceding  verse.  Then  verse  22  begins 
with  "  Even,"  &c Verses  23  and  24  form  a  most  pre- 
cious notabile — one  of  the  most  illustrious  in  Scripture. — 
My  God,  give  me  this  knowledge  of  Thyself,  that  I  may 
confide  in  Thy  lovingkindness — that  I  may  hold  in  sacred 
and  supreme  respect  Thy  judgments  and  righteousness, 
. . .  This  judgment  was  to  go  round  among  the  uncircum- 
cised,  and  circumcised  who  in  heart  were  as  bad  as  their 
neighbours. 


360  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  jeremiah  x. 

Jeremiah  x.  1-13. — But  exhortations — implying  that 
there  is  still  space  for  repentance,  are  ever  and  anon  inter- 
mingled with  these  threats  and  prophecies  of  evil  —  A 
fine  rebuke  to  the  astrologers  when  told  not  to  be  dismayed 
at  the  signs  of  heaven  ;  and  the  assertions  besides  of  a 
stability  in  their  constitution  which  survives  all  the  vain 
terrors  of  ignorance.  This  description  of  idols  reminds 
one  of  the  like  by  Isaiah,  though  short  of  his  in  ironical 
power.  But  what  a  pure  and  high  theology  is  here  given 
forth,  when  the  true  God  is  contrasted  with  the  vanities 
of  the  nations ! — To  Thee,  alone,  0  God,  appertain  the 
majesty  and  the  power  and  government  of  the  whole  earth. 
. . .  The  "  King  of  Nations ''  is  nobly  applicable  in  the  pre- 
sent day,  when  governments  would  cast  off  religion  as 
forming  any  part  of  their  concern,  and  the  civil  would  lord 

it  over  the  ecclesiastical  power How  finely  does  the 

prophet's  representation  of  the  true  God  alternate  with  the 
follies  and  grossnesses  of  Paganism  ! — 0  that  I  bore  about 
with  me  a  more  habitual  sense  of  God  as  the  living  God ; 
and  what  a  change  were  this,  to  supplant  the  naked  and 
effete  formula  of  a  mere  orthodox  article  !  His  are  wis- 
dom and  discretion,  as  well  as  power ;  and  what  a  fine 
example  of  a  power  extending  backward  through  the  steps 
of  every  natural  process — the  vapours,  the  rain,  the  wind, 
the  lightnings. 

-  14-25. — He  keeps  up  the  comparison  between  the  true 
God  and  idols.  He  then  reiterates  his  predictions  of  evil. 
The  people  should  be  so  distressed  that  they  will  find  them- 
selves slung  out  from  their  homes  into  captivity Verses 

19  and  20  form  the  lamentation  of  Jerusalem,  and  at  the 
same  time  its  resignation,  or  rather  its  acquiescence,  in 
a  helpless  necessity.     This  came  upon  them  because  of 


j£REMiAH  XI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  361 

tlie  degeneracy  and  delinquency  of  their  pastors,  and  is 
so  acknowledged  by  the  Jews  who,  in  the  form  of  a  per- 
son, speak  onward  to  the  end  of  the  chapter.  And  what 
a  precious  notabile  in  this  speech  is  verse  23.  Well  do  I 
see  that  the  way  of  man  is  not  in  himself:  I  cannot  direct 
my  own  steps.  Order  my  goings  in  Thy  paths,  that  my 
footsteps  slij)  not.  0  let  me  be  ever  asking  counsel  of 
God.  Let  me  both  pray,  and  watch  as  well  as  pray.  And, 
Heavenly  Father,  correct  me  not  beyond  what  I  am  able 
to  bear — not  in  anger,  but  for  the  purposes  of  a  spiritual 
husbandman — that  I  may  bring  forth  more  fruit.  (John 
XV.  2.) 

Jeremiah  xi.  1-10. — There  is  now  an  appeal  made  to 
the  old  covenant  entered  upon  at  the  commencement  of 
the  Israelites'  history  as  a  nation,  and  a  reference  to 
their  preceding  state  when  they  laboured  as  slaves  among 

the  iron  furnaces   of  Egypt The  prophet  in  verse  5 

assents  to  the  rightfulness  of  the  curse  pronounced  9n 
those  who  should  disobey  this  covenant.  Upon  which 
God  commissions  him,  as  one  qualified  in  respect  of  his 
views  and  principles,  to  declare  the  consequences  of  this 
disobedience — stating  what  God  had  done,  and  what  they 

had  failed  to  do God,  or  God's  prophets,  ''rising  early'' 

— an  expression  of  very  frequent  occurrence  in  this  Book 
— signifies  that  timely  and  preventive  warning  was  given 
to  the  people — space  for  repentance,  as  well  as  the  most 
earnest  and  affectionate  urgencies  that  they  should  return 
from  the  evil  of  their  ways. — Save  me,  0  God,  from  the 
imaginations  of  an  evil  heart ! . ..  They  had  often  traiis- 
gressed,  and  been  often  punished,  notwithstanding  which 
they  still  conspired  or  combined  to  repeat  the  iniquities 

VOL.  IIL  ^ 


362  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        jeremiah  xir. 


of  tlieir  fathers  over  again  ;  leaving  no  alternative  but 
that  the  sanctions  of  the  broken  covenant  must  take 
course  and  have  fulfilment  upon  them. 

11-23. — This  is  a  sad  account  of  Judah's  idolatry — 
gods  for  every  city,  and  an  altar  to  Baal  in  every  street 
of  Jerusalem.  Jeremiah  is  forbidden  to  pmy  for  them, 
as  if  they  had  already  sinned  the  sin  unto  death — that 
sin  of  which  the  apostle  John  says — ''  I  do  not  say  that 
he  should  pray  for  it.'\ . .  Verse  15  is  much  cleared  up  by 
turning  each  clause  into  an  interrogation,  and  the  "many" 
into  "  vows,""  coming  from  a  word  of  like  characters  in 
the  Hebrew,  and  so  rendered  in  the  Septuagint.  Then  it 
would  all  run  thus — "  What  hath  my  beloved  to  do  in  my 
house,  while  she  practiseth  wickedness  ?  Shall  vows  and 
holy  flesh  (sacrifices)  be  allowed  to  come  fiT)m  thee  ?    When 

thou  art  malignant,  shalt  thou  then  rejoice?'" — Blayney 

Verse  18 — "  Then  Thou  shewedst  me  their  doings."'  Jere- 
miah is  here  addressing  God.  There  was  a  very  hostile 
re-action  against  the  prophet ;  and  the  people  say  of  him 
— "  Let  us  destroy  the  tree,""  &c.,  making  him  the  tree, 
as  if  in  ironical  reiteration  of  his  own  threat  against 
them.  On  this  Jeremiah  appeals  unto  God  ;  and  we  re- 
cognise, in  verse  20,  the  same  ascription  to  God  that  we 

meet  in  Rev.  ii.  23 "  Anathoth""  is  understood  to  be 

the  birth-place  of  Jeremiah.  (See  ch.  i.  1.)  His  father  was 
one  of  the  priests  there.  And  because  of  their  hostility 
to  Jeremiah,  they  are  threatened  with  a  special  visitation 
and  special  vengeance. 

Jeremiah  xii. — The  prophet  here  complains  of  the 
prosperity  of  the  wicked  and  the  hypocritical ;  and  his 
prayer  against  them  mighty  from  his  official  character,  be 


jEKJiMiAH  xiii.         DAILY  SCRIPTUEE  READINGS.  363 

well  regarded  as  a  prediction  rather  than  the  expression 
of  a  wish.  They  huilt  themselves  up  in  their  wickedness 
under  the  false  security  that  God  would  have  no  after 
reckoning  with  them,  (verse  4.)  . . .  Verses  5  and  6  seem 
addressed  by  God  to  Jeremiah.  If  so  much  provoked  and 
discouraged  by  the  opposition  of  your  own  townsmen  in 
Anathoth,  how  much  more  when  the  dignitaries  of  JeiTi- 
salem  shall  stand  against  thee  ?  But  the  transition  here 
gives  also  a  likelihood  to  this  being  a  question  put  to  the 
people  of  Israel,  whom  God  says,  in  verse  7,  He  was  now 
to  forsake — His  heritage  being  to  Him  a  raging  enemy 
whom  He  must  cast  down ;  and  this  He  does  by  calling 
on  the  neighbouring  powers  to  invade  and  desolate  the 
land.  Their  carelessness,  their  not  laying  it  to  heart,  en- 
hances all  the  more  God's  displeasure  against  them.  All 
their  efforts  to  help  themselves  will  be  fruitless.  But 
again,  from  verse  14,  we  read  of  a  very  commonly  de- 
scribed process  in  Scripture — the  re-action  in  favour  of 
Israel,  and  against  her  enemies.  The  house  of  Judah 
shall  at  length  be  extricated  from  its  enemies,  and  expe- 
rience the  returning  compassion  of  the  Most  High ;  while 
those  of  them  who  will  not  obey  the  call  for  their  deli- 
verance shall  be  dealt  with  not  in  mercy  but  in  judg- 
ment; and  perhaps  the  nations  among  wliom  these  rebel- 
lious Jews  stiU  abide,  may  be  involved  in  destruction 
along  with  them. 

Jeremiah  xiii.  1-11. — Some  conceive  that  this  was  a 
real  transaction  on  the  part  of  Jeremiah ;  but  by  the 
greater  number  it  is  regarded  as  a  vision,  which  serves 
equally  well  for  a  representation  of  the  things  which  are 
here  predicted.     The  nation  of  Israel  was  taken  into  close 


364  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        jeremiah  xiir. 

relationship  witli  God,  even  as  a  girdle  to  its  wearer,  both 
for  service  and  ornament — to  be  tlie  glory  of  tlieir  Maker 
by  doing  His  will,  and  shewing  forth  His  praise.  But 
the  girdle  was  marred,  and  fit  only  for  being  cast  away ; 
and  so  God's  rebellious  people,  who  had  become  an  offence 
to  Him,  and  dishonoured  His  holy  name,  were  to  be  cast 
out  of  His  protection,  and  driven  forth  of  their  own  land. 
They  had  forsaken  Him,  and  should  therefore  cease  to 
cleave  unto  Him  as  heretofore.  They  might  have  been 
unto  Him  for  a  praise  and  a  glory,  instead  of  which  they 
caused  the  name  of  the  Lord  to  be  blasphemed  among 
the  nations,  and  so  were  driven  from  their  place  as  God's 
peculiar  peoj^le. 

12-27. — This  second  parable  conveys  the  lesson — ^^  Quern 
Deus  vult  perdere  prius  dementat"  And  yet  the  threat 
given  forth  by  it  does  not  prevent  the  utterances  of  an- 
other earnest  entreaty  from  the  God  who  willeth  all  men 
to  repent.  They  did  not  hear,  and  Jeremiah,  as  he  here 
predicts  of  himself,  characteristically  gave  himself  up  to 
all  the  tenderness  of  patriotic  grief  That  this  proj)hecy 
refers  to  the  captivity  of  Jehoiachin  is  probable  from  the 
comparison  of  verse  18  with  2  Kings  xx.  18.  The  flock 
that  was  given  to  Judah  is  the  body  of  the  nation,  to  be 
slain  or  dispersed  in  the  great  bulk  of  it.  (verse  21.) 
They  themselves  had,  by  casting  off  the  favour  and  pro- 
tection of  the  true  God,  opened  the  way  for  their  enemies 

to  come  in  and  lord  it  over  them Verse  22  contains  in 

it  a  reference  to  the  indignities  practised  by  conquerors 
upon  their  captives  along  the  journey  to  their  own  land. 
...Verse  23 — a  most  illustrious  notabile,  among  the 
many  others  in  which  this  Book  abounds,  and  for  which 
it  does  not  get  ail  the  credit  which  belongs  to  it — eclipsed 


JKREMIAH  XIV.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  365 

as  it  were  bj  the  juxtaposition  of  tlie  still  more  cele- 
brated prophet  Isaiah. — My  God,  turn  me,  and  hall 
be  turned.  Renew  my  heart.  Regenerate  me  by  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost "The  portion  of  Thy  mea- 
sures'' is  Thy  measured  portion ....  Verse  26  adverts  to 
the  exposure  and  disgrace  that  were  inflicted  as  a  punish- 
ment on  the  licentious ;  and  yet  the  importunities  and 
expostulations  of  the  prophet  are  kept  up  to  the  end  of  all 
these  threatenino's. 

Jeremiah  xiv.  1-12. — Blayney  considers  the  words  re- 
specting the  dearth  or  drought  to  be  a  prediction.  Verse 
15  warrants  this  idea.  And  he  thinks  that  "concerning 
the  dearth''  should  be  detached  from  verse  1  and  attached 
to  "  Judah  mourneth."  A  striking  description  of  famine  ; 
and  0  how  fearfully  realized  in  our  own  day !  I  would 
pray,  as  Jeremiah  did  for  Israel,  on  behalf  of  our  own 
land.  Give  us,  0  Lord,  a  deeper  and  more  contrite  sense 
of  our  ungodliness — of  the  sins  of  the  countiy  and  our 
own  sins.  The  prophet  expostulates  with  God,  and  asks 
why  it  is  that  He  should  take  as  little  interest  in  His  own 
chosen  land  as  a  wayfaring  man  does  in  the  country  he 
travels  through  ?  "  Or  why  as  a  man  astonied,"  rendered 
by  Blayney  "a  man  in  deep  sleep,"  in  contradiction  ta 
what  is  elsewhere  said  of  Him  as  the  Keeper  of  Israel — 
that  He  neither  slumbers  nor  sleeps.  And  yet,  0  Lord, 
instead  of  a  traveller  through.  Thou  art  a  dweller  in  the 
midst  of  us.  But  God  doth  not  accept  the  prayer.  He 
refuses  to  spare  the  people  from  the  threatened  vengeance 
He  will  now  visit  them  for  sins  become  unpardonable ; 
nay,  He  not  only  refuses  the  prophet's  prayer,  but  forbids 
him  to  pray  any  further  in  their  behalf    They  had  sinned 


366  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        ^jeremiah  xv. 

unto  death ;  and  all  tlieir  cries  and  oblations  will  avail 
tliem  no  longer. 

13-22. — Jeremiali  now  complains  of  tlie  false  prophets, 
who  said — Peace,  when  there  was  no  peace  ;  upon  which 
God  denounces  the  falsehood  of  these  prophets,  and 
threatens  them  with  the  identical  visitation  which  they 
denied  was  coming  on  the  land.  And  as  the  fate  of  these 
lying  prophets,  so  would  be  that  of  the  people — both  should 
fall  into  the  ditch.  God  therefore  enjoins  upon  Jeremiah 
— what  indeed  was  his  own  spontaneous  and  characteristic 
tendency — to  take  up  a  lamentation  for  his  country,  and 
act  the  part  of  a  mourner,  because  of  the  calamities  that 
were  to  befall  it.  It  is  interesting  to  meet  in  the  Book  of 
his  prophecy  the  same  elegiac  strains  of  exquisite  tender- 
ness and  pathos  which  form  the  staple  of  his  Lamentations 
■ — giving  us  the  same  internal  evidence  for  both,  that  we 
have  for  the  Gospel  and  Epistles  of  John,  from  the  ob- 
Adous  mannerism  by  which  they  are  alike  characterized. 
And  yet,  as  the  infliction  had  not  yet  come,  he  continues 
to  pray  for  the  averting  of  it. 

Jeremiah  xv.  1-9. — But  God  rejected  his  prayer. — It  is 
interesting  to  note  the  testimony  here  given  to  two  of  the 
most  illustrious  of  the  Hebrew  nation — undoubted  mag- 
nates in  Scripture  history — Moses  and  Samuel. — "  Let 
them  go  forth,''  go  forth  of  my  temple — insult  me  no  longer 

with  their  vain  oblations The  "  death"'  in  verse  2,  to  be 

contradistinguished  from  the  sword  and  the  famine,  must 
be  the  pestilence ;  and  thus  the  harmony  is  kept  up  with 
eh.  xiv.  12.  They  who  fall  by  the  sword  shall  be  after- 
wards devoured  by  dogs  in  the  street,  or  the  fowls  of  the 
air,  and  beasts  that  mn  wild  if  they  fall  in  the  country 


XEHEMIAH  XV.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  367 

parts.  Very  remarkable  that  the  nation  should  be  made 
to  suffer  for  the  sins  of  Manasseh,  who  himself  repented, 
and  was  taken  into  acceptance.  Doubtless  the  nation 
sinned  along*  with  the  king,  nor  did  thej  collectively  re- 
pent ;  and  God  here  charges  them  with  their  own  sins. 
It  is  a  striking  expression  of  Himself,  that  ''  He  is  wearv 
with  repenting.''  The  long-suffering,  even  of  God,  will 
come  to  its  close.  The  season  of  grace  and  opportunity 
will  in  time  be  ended. — My  God,  let  me  no  longer  abuse 
Thy  forbearance,  or  treasure  up  wrath  against  the  day  of 
wrath.     He  brought  Nebuchadnezzar  against  Jerusalem, 

the  metropolis,  the  mother  city  of  the  land "Seven'' 

means  many,  (1  Sam.  ii.  5,)  and  the  mother  in  verse  9  seems 
still  to  be  Jerusalem. 

10-21. — Jeremiah  here  intei-poses  his  own  personal  feel- 
ing, and  complains  of  the  dangers  and  hardships  attendant 

on  his  vocation  as  a  prophet Bla^aiey  has  a  different 

rendering  for  verse  11 — "They  have  reviled  me,  all  of 
them ;  but  as  for  you,  Jeremiah,  have  I  not  stood  by 
you  against  the  enemy  ?  Shall  iron,  shall  the  force  and 
amiour  of  the  enemy  break  the  iron  of  the  North  f — where 
this  metal  was  tempered  into  steel.  Shall  the  enemy  pre- 
vail over  thee,  Jeremiah,  whom  I  have  made  as  an  iron 
pillar  ?  (cL  i.  18.)  But  a  sure  destniction  will  come  upon 
the  land,  addressed  in  verses  18  and  14 ;  upon  the  utter- 
ances of  which  threat  Jeremiah  prays  for  the  Divine  pro- 
tection, and  vengeance  on  his  persecutors.  I  did  eat  Thy 
words — I  entertained  them.    I  stood  alone  for  God  among 

the  people The  being  "  filled  with  indignation  "  might 

signify  the  being  filled  with  grief  for  his  countrymen, 
because  of  God's  indignation  against  them.  Yet  there  is 
indignation  too  in  the  prophet's  own  heart,  because  of  the 


3G8  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        jeremiah  xvi. 

treatment  he  received  at  their  hands Those  waters 

might  be  termed  deceitful  which  cause  expectation  by 
their  fulness,  but  are  afterwards  dried  up To  '^  sepa- 
rate the  precious  from  the  vile ''  is  a  notable  expression, 
and  might  be  applied  to  ail  true  ministers  of  pure  doc- 
trine. Grod  promises  defence  and  security  to  Jeremiah,  if 
he  will  keep  aloof  from  the  multitude,  and  not  give  in  to 
them. 

February y  1847. 

Jeremiah  xvi.  1-9. — Jeremiah  does  not  just  prophesy 
by  performed  action,  but  by  action  in  a  sense,  for  God  for- 
bids him  to  have  a  family,  and  that  because  of  the  ruin 
and  desolation  now  threatened,  and  certainly  to  come  on 
all  the  families  of  the  land.  He  is  even  forbidden  to  mourn 
for  them — as  if,  because  the  objects  of  God's  wrath,  they 
must  not  be  the  objects  of  his  sympathy.  The  practice 
of  cutting  themselves  for  the  dead  was  heathenish,  and 
forbidden  to  the  Jews,  (Lev.  xix.  28,)  yet  as  being  cus- 
tomary notwithstanding,  it  is  here  specified  among  other 
indications  of  grief  for  the  dead,  from  which  on  this  occa- 
sion they  were  altogether  to  abstain.  And  neither,  in- 
deed, was  he  to  feast  with  them  any  more  than  to  mourn 
with  them — as  little  to  rejoice  with  them  that  rejoiced  as 
weep  with  them  that  wept ;  for  the  days  were  soon  com- 
ing when  all  mirth  was  to  be  extinguished,  and  mean- 
while Jeremiah  was  forbidden  from  giving  any  counte- 
nance to  these  thoughtless  and  secure  people. 

10-21. — Observe  here,  too,  that  the  sons  are  made 
chargeable  with  the  iniquities  of  their  fathers,  (verse  11,) 
thougli  there  was  no  want  of  personal  deserving  on  their 
parts,  for  they  liad  done  worse  than  their  fathers.  They 
substituted  gods  of  their  own  device,  walking  after  the 


JEREMIAH  xvir.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  3G9 

imagination  of  their  evil  heart,  and  preferred  these  idols 
to  the  living  and  true  God.  They  should  therefore  be 
cast  abroad,  over  distant  lands,  where  God  would  show 
them  no  favour.  Yet  a  promise,  and  a  glorious  one  too, 
comes  instantly  in  the  train  of  this  menace.  This  pro- 
mise of  a  return,  greater  and  more  illustrious  than  their 
return  from  the  land  of  Egypt,  might  have  been  typified 
by  their  return  from  Babylon,  but  surely  has  not  had  its 
adequate  fulfilment  in  this.  His  eye  was  full  on  their 
iniquity,   and  for  this  they  should  be  amply  reckoned 

with Do  not  "  the  fishers''  signify  fishers  of  men,  who 

should  prosecute  an  extensive  missionary  work  among 
the  Jews  ?  and  w^ill  they  not  come  to  acknowledge  their 
rebellion,  and  that  of  their  fathers,  when  they  shall  look 
on  Him  whom  they  have  pierced,  and  then  will  they 
come  to  know  the  name  of  the  Lord  ?  The  veil  will  be 
taken  from  their  hearts,  and  on  their  national  conversion 
the  Gentiles  will  come  unto  them,  and  do  them  honour. 

Jeremiah  xvii.  1-12. — Sin  is  written,  and  at  length 
indelibly,  on  the  sinner's  heart  by  long  and  inveterate 
use,  till  at  length  it  is  also  indelibly  written  in  the  book 
of  condemnation.  The  children  of  Israel  gave  way  to 
their  associations  of  wickedness  with  their  places  of  for- 
bidden indulgence,  whenever  they  thought  of  them  — 
Judah  is  termed  God's  mountain.  Substance  should  be 
connected  with  field — thy  substance  in  the  field  —  Verse 
5  is  an  eminent  notabile. — My  God,  let  me  have  no  confi- 
dence in  the  creature — nor  let  me  depart  from  Thee,  as 
all  my  trust  and  all  my  dependence — else  I  shall  dwell 
in  a  dry  land,  and  not  share  in  any  real  good.  My  God, 
be  Thou  all  my  hope,  and  let  me  fare  accordingly,  so  as 

q2 


370  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.      JERE>nAH  xvti. 

to  abound  in  all  tlie  fruits  of  righteousness.  But  what  a 
heart  mine  1%  and  how  strongly  but  not  too  strongly  re- 
23resented  in  verse  9 — a  most  illustrious  notabile  !  I  have 
not  sounded  the  depth  of  its  deceitfulness  and  desperate 
wickedness.  Thou,  0  God,  knowest  it  thoroughly;  but 
0  anticipate  the  judgment  of  condemnation  by  search- 
ing and  trying  and  cleansing  me  from  secret  faults,  and 
so  putting  me  on  the  way  of  life  everlasting.  (Psalms 
xix.  12 ;  cxxxix.  23,  24.)— The  ill-gotten  wealth  of  the 
dishonest  will  not  avail  them.  Let  us  not  seek  to 
the  deceitful  objects  of  this  world  for  our  stable  pros- 
perity, but  seek  unto  Him  who  endureth  for  ever,  and 
whose  throne  is  in  the  glorious  and  unchangeable  serene 
above  us. 

13-27. — God  is  the  hope  of  Israel,  the  hope  of  believers, 
and  called  in  Romans  xv.  13,  the  "  God  of  hope.'"' ..."  The 
fountain  of  living  waters''  is  an  expression  peculiar  to 
Jeremiah,  who  is  fertile  both  in  terms  and  sayings  of  most 
important  significancy.  The  Lord  was  the  object  of  his 
praise ;  but  he  was  held  in  great  discredit  and  disrepute 
by  his  countrymen.  He  pleads  the  matter  with  God  ;  he 
had  not  hasted  beyond  the  pace  of  a  mere  follower;  he 
had  not  outrun  God's  message.  It  was  not  any  desire  of 
mine  that  these  tidings  of  evil  should  take  effect.  Be  not 
Thou  therefore  a  terror  to  me,  as  the  offended  Jews  are. 
Be  Thou  my  refuge  from  them,  and  let  them  be  con- 
founded. He  utters  against  them  the  maledictions  of  a 
prophet ;  but  still  even  they  were  not  conclusively  given 
over.  They  are  bidden  to  observ^e  the  Sabbath,  or  perhaps 
were  bidden  some  time  before,  and  with  the  encourage- 
ment of  a  promise,  would  they  but  obey.  But  they  did 
not,  and  the  promise  was  made  void  by  themselves,  and 


/EREMiAH  xviii.     DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  371 

tlius  they  brought  on  their  own.  destruction.  What  testi- 
monies for  the  Sabbath,  from  both  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah — 
and  that  hy  prophets  who  spake  of  the  comparative  ivorth- 
lessness  of  rites  ! 

Jeremiah  xviil  1-11. — Another  trial,  another  effort  as 
it  were,  on  the  joart  of  a  long-suffering  God,  not  willing 
that  Israel  should  perish,  but  rather  that  it  should  turn 
unto  Him  and  repent.  My  friend,  Mr.  Erskine,  grounded 
on  this  passage  one  of  his  arguments  against  uncondi- 
tional election,  on  the  idea  that  Paul  took  his  illustration 
by  the  potter  from  the  use  which  Jeremiah  had  made  of 
it  before  him.  We  have  no  doubt  of  this  doctrine  in  its 
most  absolute  form — yet  not  in  a  form  that  excludes  con- 
ditions, but  rather  that  enhances  their  importance  and 
necessity  to  the  uttermost,  being  alike  indispensable  with 
the  final  upshot  in  which  they  terminate.  Let  us  take 
an  example  from  the  prophet,  of  plying  our  people  with 
all  urgency  and  earnestness  to  the  last,  while  we  fully 
agree  with  the  Apostle  in  thinking  that  God  overrules  all, 
and  determines  all.  God  will  repent,  not  of  aught  that 
He  has  decreed,  but  of  aught  that  He  has  pronounced  in 
the  hearing  of  the  wicked,  if  they  but  turn  from  their 
wickedness. 

12-23. — Tlieir  saying  that  "there  is  no  hope''  is  tanta- 
mount to  a  rejection  of  the  prophet's  advice — our  following 
of  it  is  not  to  be  hoped  for,  for  we  shall  take  our  own  way. 
Israel  did  a  horrible  thino^  in  thus  forsakinof  God.  Shall  a 
man  leave  the  natural  supply  of  good  water,  and  seek  for 
it  from  afar  by  artificial  methods  of  his  own  ?  or  will  he 
forsake  the  fountain  of  living  waters,  the  Ancient  of  days, 
whom  his  fathers  were  taught  to  revere,   and  walk  in 


'.}7-2  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.        jeremiah  xi.t. 

tlie  way  that  was  not  i:>rescribed,  or  clialked  out  for  them  ? 
And  for  this  monstrous  perversity  did  God  lay  His  threats 
and  maledictions  uj^on  them.  And  for  this  they  re-acted 
against  His  messenger  Jeremiah  :  they  platted  mischief 
against  Him :  they  had  recourse  to  priests  and  prophets 
and  counsellors  of  their  o^Tn,  in  whom  they  had  confidence. 
By  help  of  these,  they  proposed  to  smite  him  with  the 
tongue,  to  heap  upon  him  their  calumnies  and  reproaches. 
But  like  David  when  beset  by  his  enemies,  he  betook 
himself  to  prayer.  Let  us  hope  that  both  his  depreca- 
tions, and  those  of  the  Psalmist,  were  the  predictions  of 
inspired  men,  rather  than  the  imprecations  of  a  vengeful 
spirit.  Our  Saviour  bids  us  pray  not  against  but  for 
them  who  despitefully  use  and  persecute  us. 

Jeremiah  xix. — The  menaces  of  its  coming  destruction 
thicken  more  and  more  upon  Jerusalem  as  the  prophecy 
advances — and  just  as  the  provocation  of  neglected  warn- 
ings is  all  the  more  and  more  heightened Tophet  may 

signify  pleasure,  in  Avhich  case  there  will  be  a  sad  ex- 
change of  names  for  it ;  or,  it  may  signify  a  drum,  per- 
haps a  cymbal — instruments  often  of  glad  and  happy  cele- 
bration ;  but  said  to  have  been  used  for  drowning  the  cries 
of  children  sacrificed  to  Moloch.  Then  the  name  would  be 
changed  from  the  slaughter  of  children  to  that  of  men. 
The  prophecy  is  in  part  by  action — its  fulfilment  being 
signified  by  the  breaking  of  a  bottle.  There  should  be  as 
great  a  slaughter  in  Jerusalem  as  in  Tophet,  the  valley 
without ;  and  it  should  also  be  a  place  defiled  as  Tophet 
was.  These  fearful  reproaches  and  denunciations  are  again 
repeated  within  the  city,  in  the  place  of  greatest  concourse, 
the  court  of  the  temple.     By  hardening  their  necks,  they 


JEREMIAH  xxu        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  373 

had  treasured  up  -svi'ath  against  the  day  of  wrath — were 
suddenly  destroyed,  and  that  without  remedy. 

Jeremiah  xx. — A  narrative  of  Jeremiah's  hardship, 
and  his  complaint  thereupon.  "  Magor-missabiV''  signifies 
"  Terror  all  round."'  After  a  very  clear  prediction  of  the 
evils  that  were  coming  upon  Judah,  the  prophet  turns 
him  to  God,  and  makes  his  plaint  in  a  style  that  appears 
to  us  irreverent  and  daring.  Blayney  to  soften  this  im- 
putation on  Jeremiah,  for  "deceive"  inverse  7,  substi- 
tutes "allure,"  by  which  he  understands — to  persuade. 
And  then  instead  of  "  thou  art  stronger,"  as  if  Jeremiah 
had. been  forced  against  his  will,  he  renders  it — "Thou 
didst  encourage  me.''  And  then  when  I  speak,  threaten- 
ing violence  and  spoil  against  the  people,  the  word  which 
I  utter  becomes  a  reproach  and  derision  in  their  mouths. 
They  urged  one  another  to  frame  calumnies  against  him, 
which  they  engaged  to  repeat.  They  "  watched  for  his 
halting" — a  notable  and  now  proverbial  expression.  He 
was  thus  tempted  to  keep  silence,  yet  could  not  refrain 
from  the  utterance  of  his  inspirations ;   and  with  all  his 

murmurings  still  retained  his  confidence  in  God Verse 

12,  the  same  with  ch.  xi.  20.  He  gratefully  sings  unto  God 
— yet  follows  this  up  with  an  elegiacal  lamentation  of  his 
own  suffering,  not  unmixed  perhaps  with  the  sorrows  of 
afflicted  patriotism. 

Jeremiah  xxi. — This  prophecy  is  regarded  by  Blayney 
as  not  placed  aright  in  the  Book — many  subsequent  chap- 
ters applying  to  a  time  prior  to  that  to  which  this  one 
refers,  even  to  the  last  revolt  of  Zedekiah,  and  which 
ended  in  the  capture  of  Jerusalem  by  Nebuchadnezzar ; 


z' 


374  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       jeremiah  xxii. 

and  he  assigns  the  following  as  the  right  order  as  to  this 
capture: — Chapters  xxi.,  xxxiv.,  xxxvii.,  xxxii.,  xxxiii., 
xxxviii.,  xxxix.  And  he  regards  the  prophecy  in  xxxvii. 
as  distinct  from  the  one  before  us,  which  was  given  in 
reply  to  the  information  and  inquiry  of  Zedekiah,  telling 
him  of  the  commencement  of  these  hostilities.  Nothing 
can  he  more  clear  and  peremptoiy  than  the  prophet's 
forewarning  of  evil  to  the  monarch  and  the  monarchy. 
But  to  the  people  there  is  an  alternative  presented,  and 
the  terms  of  it,  "  the  way  of  life  and  the  way  of  death," 
are  notable,  and  might  be  used  with  effect  and  propriety 
by  a  minister  from  the  pulpit.  And  yet  there  seems  to 
have  been  hope  for  those  of  the  king's  house,  who  sliQuld 
turn  from  the  evil  of  their  way.  Blayney  also,  in  verse  13, 
calls  the  valley  the  levelled  hollow  of  the  rock,  and  un- 
derstands by  it  Mount  Zion,  where  the  palaces  were  built 
of  timber  from  Lebanon. 

Jeremiah  xxii.  1-9. — "We  now  go  back  to  prophecies 
delivered  in  the  reign  of  Jehoiakim.  See  how  the  pro- 
phets shot  a-head  as  it  were  of  the  ritualisms  of  the  Jewish 
economy,  and  urged  home  with  ever  augmenting  clear- 
ness and  earnestness  the  lesson  that  mercy  is  better  than 
sacrifice.  At  the  same  time  the  sanctions  even  for  their 
more  spiritual  law  were  still  of  a  temporal  character — 
the  reward  for  righteousness  being  the  continuance  and 
wealth  of  the  Jewish  monarchy  and  state.  Thou  art  at 
present  wealthy  as  Gilead  and  high  as  Lebanon,  but  if 
thou  wilt  not  obey,  invasion  and  overthrow  and  ruinous 
desolation  will  come  upon  thee.  And  the  cause  of  the 
destruction  will  be  made  quite  palpable,  insomuch  that 
every  inquiry  regarding  it  will  be  met  by  the  answer — 


JEREMIAH  xxii.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  37.1 

that  for  their  idolatries  and  their  abandonment  of  the  true 
God  have  they  thus  been  brought  low.  It  is  thus  that 
even  the  rebellions  and  reverses  of  Israel  tended  to  keep 
up  a  sense  of  the  true  God  among  many  neighbouring 
nations. 

10-19. — Shallum  is  understood  to  have  been  by  a  change 
of  name  Jehoahaz — who  was  taken  to  Egypt  and  died 
there.  (2  Kings  xxiii.  34.)  And  we  are  here  bidden  not 
to  weep  for  the  dead,  but  for  those  in  hopeless  captivity. 
The  prophet  then  turns  to  his  successor,  who  it  seems 
kept  building  at  a  magnificent  palace,  but  paid  not  the 
workmen  their  wages.  Wliat  a  rebuke  to  those  of  the  pre- 
sent day  who  affect  an  establishment  and  a  style  either  be- 
yond their  power,  or  beyond  their  willingness  to  remune- 
rate those  whom  they  employ,  or  from  whom  they  purchase ! 
He  is  reproached  with  the  example  of  his  father ;  and 
one  is  glad  to  find  such  earnest  and  decisive  testimonies 
by  the  prophets  on  the  side  of  those  per[)etual  moralities 
which  should  take  the  precedence  of  all  that  is  merely 
ritual  and  positive.  And  Jehoiakim  seems  to  have  ex- 
torted from  his  subjects,  as  well  as  to  have  kept  back 
their  dues  from  his  labourers  and  ser^^ants — making,  it  is 
to  be  presumed,  unrighteous  levies,  and  amassing  as 
much  for  hoarding  and  from  covetousness,  as  for  the  pur- 
poses of  a  lavish  expenditure.  And  so  he  acted  the  part 
of  a  bloody  oppressor,  and  is  here  threatened  with  his 
deserts,  in  an  ignominious  and  unlamented  death. 

20-30. — Lebanon  may  be  here  the  house  of  Solomon, 
the  house  of  Judah,  the  Jewish  state,  addressed  in  verse 
23  as  the  inhabitant  of  Lebanon ;  and  she  is  here  told 
that  there  is  no  escape  for  her,  whether  she  go  to  the  tops 
of  the  mountains  or  to  the  frontiers  of  the  land.     Thy 


376  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,     jerkmiah  xxiit. 

pastors,  rather  than  pastures,  and  all  the  fondest  objects 
of  thy  regard  will  be  destroyed  or  forced  into  captivi- 
ty; and  thou  who  wouldst  not  hear  in  prosperity  wilt 
be  made  gracious,  or  humbled  and  softened,  when  the 
agonies  of  thy  sad  visitation  come  upon  thee.  Coniah  is 
Jeconiah  or  Jehoiachin.  (See  2  Kings  xxiv.  8-1 6 ;  and 
1  Chron.  iii.  16.)  The  fulfilment  of  verse  26  is  recorded 
in  2  Kings  xxiv.  15.  He  was  written  childless,  not  be- 
cause he  was  without  descendants,  (1  Chron.  iii.  17,  18  ; 
Matthew  i;  12,)  but  because  none  of  them  ever  succeeded 

him  in  the  independent  monarchy  of  Judea "A  vessel 

wherein  there  is  no  pleasure""  is  a  notable  expression, 
and  significant  of  what  men  are  in  relation  to  God — 
vessels  of  mercy  unto  honour,  or  of  wrath  unto  everlasting 
contempt.— 0  let  me  walk  worthy  of  the  Lord  unto  all 
well-pleasing.  The  prediction  against  the  posterity  of 
Jeconiah  is  ushered  in  with  a  solemn  invocation.  Let 
the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  make  a  study,  and  consider 
well  the  judgments  of  the  Lord,  that  they  may  learn 
righteousness. 

Jeeemiah  xxiii.  1-8. — There  is  much  in  Jeremiah 
against  unfaithful  pastors,  much  whereon  to  found  a  "con- 
cio  ad  clerum.''  The  vengeance  of  God  is  especially  di- 
rected against  them,  and  His  compassion  to  their  injured 
and  misled  flocks.  There  is  not  a  richer  gift  to  any  people 
than  that  of  sending  them  pastors  according  to  God's  own 
heart.  Do  this,  0  Lord,  for  our  Church  and  our  countiy. 
But  what  glorious  and  blessed  verses  are  the  5th  and  6th 
— the  latter  a  most  illustrious  notabile.  In  these  we  have 
the  promise  from  God  of  His  unspeakable  gift  Christ 
Jesus,  termed  here  "Jehovah  our  Righteousness '' — a  most 


JEREMIAH  xxiii.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  377 

decisive  argument  for  tlie  Divinity  of  our  Lord.  And 
what  a  noble  prophecy  we  have  in  the  two  following 
verses — a  prophecy  not  yet  conclusively  fulfilled,  for  the 
return  from  Babylon,  though  it  may  be  a  typical  is  quite 
an  inadequate  fulfilment :  and  we  therefore  look  forward 
to  a  far  more  general  and  permanent  restoration. 

9-18. — Jeremiah  with  all  the  severity  of  his  denuncia- 
tion on  the  objects  of  his  -vvrath  cannot  help  mourning 
for  them.  Even  the  prophets,  those  more  special  and 
enormous  ofienders  with  whom  he  so  frequently  reckons, 
share  in  his  compassion,  when  he  bethinks  him  of  their 
unhappy  fate.  Their  might  was  not  right.  Their  power 
was  directed  to  the  purposes  of  oppression  and  iniquity. 
And  he  joins  the  priests  with  the  prophets  who  commit- 
ted wickedness  even  in  God's  sacred  house.  A  special 
vengeance  was  in  reserve  for  both.  The  idolatrous  pro- 
phets of  Samaria  had  long  been  in  a  state  of  palpable  and 
declared  revolt  from  the  true  God ;  but  the  prophets  of 
Jerusalem  were  their  rivals  in  all  sorts  of  licentious  and 
unprincipled  wickedness.  Their  example  spread  a  most 
pernicious  influence  over  the  land.  And  what  a  descrip- 
tion for  being  carried  home  to  those  of  the  present  day, 
who  also  speak  visions  of  their  own  heart,  fanciful  spiri- 
tualizations  of  Scripture,  the  products  of  their  own  vani- 
ty, instead  of  being  the  obedient  disciples  and  faithful 
stewards  and  expounders  of  the  Divine  "Word.  And  they 
deceived  the  people  into  a  treacherous  complacency — 
saying,  "  Peace,  peace,  when  there  was  no  peace.""  These 
prophets  had  no  warrant  from  God,  verse  18  :  they  stood 
not  in  his  counsel :  they  heard  not  His  word,  nor  took 
their  commission  from  His  mouth. 

19-29. — The  prophet   continues   these   denunciations. 


378  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,      jeremiah  xxm. 

In  the  latter  days  ye  shall  consider  it — ye  shall  clearly 
recognise  this  prophecy  in  its  fulfilment.  Neither  the 
word  of  the  Lord  nor  the  anger  of  the  Lord  will  return 
unto  Him  void.  There  is  a  special  force  of  indignation 
directed  against  those  who  assumed  to  he  prophets  with- 
out a  commission,  and  spoke  falsely. — 0  may  I  ever  stand 
in  Thy  counsel,  0  Lord.  I  am  a  God  at  hand,  saith  the 
Lord,  and  not  afar  off.  There  is  nothing  hidden  from  the 
omniscient  eye  of  Him  who  fills  earth  and  heaven  with 
His  presence.  I  see  in  particular  the  deceitfulness  of 
those  who  utter  prophecies  of  their  own  devising.  These 
prophets  withdraw  the  people  as  eff'ectually  from  God  as 
Baal  withdrew  them  from  Him  in  the  days  of  their  fathers. 
Those  are  true  prophets  who  have  dreams  and  rightly 
propound  them,  and  who  receive  my  word  and  faithfully 
deliver  it.  But  why  give  the  same  homage  to  false  pro- 
phets as  to  them  ?  Wliy  value  chaff  as  you  would  wheat  ? 
The  real  Word  of  God  is  weighty  and  powerful. — May  I 
experience  its  efiicacy.  May  it  hurn  within  me.  May  it 
have  the  mastery  over  me.  May  it  subdue  all  my  lofty 
imaginations — and  break  down  whatever  there  opposeth 
itself  to  God.  May  it  more  especially  make  my  heart 
contrite  and  tender,  and  malleable  to  every  right  influ- 
ence.— Verse  29  is  quite  a  notabile. 

30-40. — Those  prophets  may  be  said  to  steal  the  word 
of  God  who  keep  back  from  the  people  that  true  and 
real  word  which  is  rightfully  theirs,  and  give  them  their 
own  counterfeit  in  its  place.  It  is  like  giving  them  base 
for  sterling  money — the  sayings  of  their  own  tongues  in- 
stead of  God's  sayings.  It  would  look  as  if  "  the  burden 
of  the  Lord"  had  been  a  term  of  obloquy  attached  to  His 
prophecies — because  they  were  so  laden  with  the  denun- 


JEREMIAH  xxTV.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  379 

ciations  of  evil.  Now  it  comes,  and  without  any  rej^roacli- 
ful  meaning,  to  signify  the  subject  of  any  composition  or 
discourse ;  but  then  it  seems  to  have  been  a  stigma,  and 
is  so  resented  in  these  verses.  Had  they  but  done  aright 
by  God's  word,  they  would  have  found  it  no  burden. 
Their  only  burden  has  come  upon  them  because  they 
have  perverted  the  true  words  of  God,  and  hearkened  to 
the  words  of  false  prophets.  This  is  the  whole  secret  and 
explanation  of"  their  burden,  and  for  scornfully  casting 
such  a  byword  on  God's  message,  His  displeasure  is  laid 
upon  them. 

Jeremiah  xxiv. — This  prophecy  would  seem  to  have 
been  delivered  posterior  to  the  date  of  the  succeeding  one, 
and  therefore  is  not  here  in  its  right  chronological  place 
— for  it  was  uttered  after  the  captivity  of  Jeconiah,  and 
probably  at  the  commencement  of  Zedekiah's  reign.  It 
is  prophecy  through  the  medium  of  an  allegorical  repre- 
sentation. There  are  some  memorable  and  very  savoury 
expressions  in  this  chapter. — Set  Thine  eyes  upon  me,  0 
God,  for  good — for  special  good  this  day  at  the  opening 
of  the  West  Port  Church.  And  0  give  the  people  there  a 
heart  to  know  Thee.  May  they  turn  unto  Thee  with  their 
whole  heart.  May  they  be  unto  Thee  Thy  people,  and  be 
Tliou  unto  them  their  God.     May  they  know  that  Thou  art 

Jehovah,  and  learn  to  glorify  God  as  God Wliat  precious 

phraseology  for  prayer  is  to  be  found,  and  that  with  all 
richness,  in  Scripture.  And,  0  do  Thou  avert  from  our 
land  the  judgments  which  are  at  Thy  bidding,  and  where- 
with Thou  art  now  visiting  and  exercising  so  many  of 
our  countrymen.  Famine  is  busy  with  its  ravages  ;  and 
pestilence  may  follow  in  its  train.     Help  us,  0  God. 


380  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.       jeremiah  xxv. 

Jeremiah  xxv.  1-14. — The  fourth  year  of  Jehoiakim 
is  the  three  and  twentieth  year  from  the  thirteenth  of 
Josiah,  at  which  time  Jeremiah  began  his  office  as  a  pro- 
phet, (ch.  i.  2.)  It  was  the  three  and  twentieth  year  of  his 
high  vocation — so  that  living  as  he  did  till  after  the  de- 
struction of  Jerusalem,  he  must  have  held  the  office  for  a 

long  period "  Rising  early'' — giving  timely  notice,  and 

in  the  assiduous  discharge  of  his  commission  from  the 
Lord  who  sent  the  warning  in  good  season,  and  gave  them 
long  enough  space  and  large  enough  oj^portunity  for 
repentance.  The  invasion  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  and  the 
utter  iniin  both  of  the  Jewish  and  neighbouring  nations, 
are  very  clearly  predicted  ;  but  after  this  also  the  length 
of  the  captivity,  the  seventy  years  of  which  Daniel  makes 
mention^  and  then  the  destruction  that  would  come  in  turn 

on  their  proud  invaders The  "  sound  of  the  millstones" 

was  that  which  first  met  the  ears  of  the  people,  the  grind- 
ing being  their  earliest  morning  work.  The  "  lighting  of 
the  candles''  was  that  which  first  ushered  in  the  evening. 
The  cessation  of  these  marked  a  land  that  had  been  de- 
solated of  its  families.  For  one  nation  to  serve  itself  of 
another  is  to  exact  and  make  use  of  the  service  of  that 

other.     The  subduers  became  in  turn  the  subdued It 

is  interesting  to  note  how  early  the  prophecies  of  Jere- 
miah were  committed  to  writing.  A  book  had  been  al- 
ready formed  of  them,  or  was  in  process  of  forming. 

15-26. — Jeremiah  now  represents  himself  as  commis- 
sioned to  carry  the  cup  of  vengeance,  the  phials  of  God's 
wrath,  round  among  the  nations ;  and  he  recalls  himself 
from  Babylon  against  which  he  had  just  been  prophesying, 
and  recommences  with  Jerusalem.  It  is  very  likely  from 
the  clause  in  verse  18,  "  as  at  this  day" — that  there  was 


JEREMIAH  XXV.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  381 

a  compilation  of  the  prophecies  made  after  the  destruction 
of  JeiTisalem,  and  that  the  compiler,  Baruch  it  might  be, 
interposed  this  note  of  the  prophecy  having  now  reached 
its  fulfilment  —  Verse  20,  "the  mingled  people"'  were 
probably  the  foreign  settlers  in  Egypt — such  perhaps  as 
the  mixed  multitude  of  Exod.  xii.  38,  akin  to  those  of 

Judah  in  Keh.  xiii.  3  ;  see  Ezek.  xxx.  5 An  island, 

according  to  Scripture,  may  be  a  country  having  the  sea 
on  one  side.  The  isles  of  verse  22  may  be  not  the  Archi- 
pelago only,  but  the  coasts  of  continental  Europe.  Shesh- 
ach  is  Babylon,  (ch.  li.  41.)  Babylon  after  being  the  in- 
strument of  all  the  previous  destructions  here  recorded 
was  itself  to  be  destroyed. 

27-38. — There  was  no  escape  from  these  denounced 
calamities  which  were  surely  to  overtake  the  nations — 
"  The  Lord  hath  said  it,  and  shall  He  not  do  it?''. ..  It  is  a 
notable  expression  in  verse  31,  the  "  controversy  that  the 
Lord  hath  with  the  nations" — a  tenn  which  we  can 
transfer  to  the  question  between  God  and  the  species  at 
large. — Give  me  no  rest,  0  Lord,  till  this  controversy  be 

made  up  by  Him  who  mediates  between  God  and  man 

The  calamity  was  to  be  progressive — passing  from  nation 
to  nation  along  the  track  of  the  invader's  footsteps.  The 
slain  shall  cover  all  *the  land — that  is,  from  one  end  of 

every  subdued  country  to  the  other  of  it There  is  a 

special  address  to  the  pastors  with  whom  Jeremiah  holds 
such  frequent  reckoning  throughout  his  prophecy ;  and 
also  with  the  principal  of  the  flock,  with  the  rulers  and 

chief  men  of  Judea The  "  fall  like  a  pleasant  vessel " 

denotes  the  fracture  which  will  take  place,  as  when  a 
beauteous  yet  brittle  vessel  falls  upon  the  ground.  The 
Lord  will  spoil  their  pasture — the  whole  of  that  land 


382  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.      jeeemiah  xxvi. 

whence  they  drew  their  tithes  and  offerings  and  revenues. 
— 0  God,  withdraw  the  judgment  wherewith  Thou  art 
now  desolating  our  land. 

Jeremiah  xxvi.  1-15. — The  proi:)liecY  which  Jeremiah 
is  here  directed  to  give  in  the  court  of  the  temple  has  for 
its  special  object  the  destruction  of  that  sacred  place,  with 
the  assurance  that  its  sacredness  would  prove  no  exemp- 
tion for  it ;  but  that,  just  as  Shiloh — at  one  time  the  abode 
of  the  Ark,  was  now  desolate — and  probably  by  invading 
armies,  so  the  same  doom  awaited  Jerusalem.  Still  it 
was  a  conditional  prophecy,  and  delivered  for  the  express 
object  of  warning,  and,  it  may  be,  of  recalling  the  people 
from  their  wickedness.  And  here  the  wonted  reference 
is  made  to  God  rising  up  early — giving  timely  notice  by 
His  messengers  of  what  was  coming.  The  people,  how- 
ever, remained  stout  and  resolute  in  their  opposition — so 
that  all  which  was  called  forth  by  this  remonstrance  was 
a  re-action  of  personal  hostility  against  the  prophet  him- 
self— a  conspiracy  in  which  the  people  joined,  both  the 
priests  and  the  prophets  of  Israel.  But  there  was  still 
another  party  whose  consent  had  to  be  gained  before  he 
should  be  put  to  death.  Beside  the  ecclesiastical  men, 
who  it  seems  had  influenced  the  peofle  against  him,  there 
behoved  to  be  an  appeal  to  the  civil  iiilers — the  princes. 
The  ^'' odium  ecclesiasticum''  is  often  more  rancorous  and 
intent  than  the  "  odium  civile,""  as  has  been  abundantly 
proved  by  many  historical  instances  of  the  same. 

16-24. — And  accordingly  these  princes  did  interj^ose  in 
favour  of  Jeremiah,  whose  protestations  of  his  Divine  com- 
mission— delivered  we  doubt  not  with  all  earnestness  and 
sincerity,  seem  to  have  impressed  them.     It  is  remarkable 


JEREMIAH  xxvii.    DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  383 

that  whereas  all  the  people,  in  verse  8,  sided  witli  the 
priests,  they,  in  verse  16,  are  said  to  side  with  the  princes, 
and  against  the  priests  and  prophets.  They  had  been 
gained  over,  while  the  ecclesiastics  seem  resolved  to 
die  hard,  though  now  alone  —  The  allusion  to  Micah  is 
bibliographically  in  my  estimation  of  the  greatest  value, 
(See  Micah  iii.  12.)  But  there  were  other  prophets  who 
have  left  no  writings  behind  them,  as  Urijah,  who  did  not 
fare  so  well  as  Micah.  And  mark  the  different  conse- 
quences :  Hezekiah  had  a  long  and  prosperous  reign ; 
Jehoiakim's  was  a  most  ruinous  one.  One  might  wonder 
that  the  transaction  here  recorded  being  under  him,  he 
did  not  cut  off  Jeremiah  also.  This  seems  to  be  account- 
ed for  in  the  last  verse,  by  the  friendly  and  favourable 
influence  of  a  grandee — Ahikam  the  son  of  Shaphan. 

Jeremiah  xxvii.  1-11. — By  some  Jehoiakim  in  verse  1 
is  considered  a  mistake  for  Zedekiah.  (See  verses  3  and 
12.) . . .  The  prophecy  to  which  Jeremiah  is  directed  is  one 
by  symbol.  What  a  fine  example  of  the  manner  in  which 
a  pure  theism  was  spread  abroad  from  Judea  among  the 
countries  around  it — that  is,  by  messages  from  a  true  pro- 
phet through  the  ambassadors  of  these  countries  to  their 
respective  monarchs.  The  creative  power  and  supremacy 
which  are  ascribed  by  natural  theology  to  the  one  God, 
form  the  argument  of  his  message  to  parties  who  stood 
in  need  of  the  most  elementary  lessons  on  the  subject. 
They  were  ignorant  of  the  first  principles  of  the  true 
religion.  This  pre-intimation  would  not  be  without  its 
efiicacy  when  it  came  to  be  fulfilled.  Both  their  own 
subjugation  to  Nebuchadnezzar  and  his  subjugation  to 
the  kings  who  should  serve  themselves  of  him,  are  here 


384  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,    jeremiah  xxvii. 

clearly  foretold  ;  and  tlie  manifest  accomplishment  would 
either  convince  or  condemn  those  before  whose  eyes  it  was 
placed.  It  would  seem  that  these  neighbouring  countries 
had  also  their  enchanters  and  diviners,  who  prophesied 

falsely The  punishment  of  famine  comes  home  to  our 

own  land  at  the  present  time. — My  God,  lighten  and 
avert  it. 

12-22. — After  having  made  the  round  of  the  adjacent 
kings,  the  message  was  given  to  Zedekiah  also.  The  in- 
trepid old  prophet  here  uses  great  plainness  of  speech  in 
the  ears  of  his  sovereign — repeating  to  him  the  solemn 
warnings  which  he  had  already  given  to  the  priests  and 
to  the  people.  He  delivers  his  usual  protestation  «.gainst 
the  false  prophets,  who,  probably  in  the  interest  and  with 
the  countenance  of  Zedekiah,  persuaded  the  people  to 
hold  out  against  the  Babylonish  invasion.  The  certainty 
of  the  fact  that  they  would  disobey,  does  not  restrain,  but 
rather  stimulates  all  the  more  the  urgencies  of  the  pro- 
phet— a  mystery  this,  which  attaches  to  all  preaching,  but 

which  will  be  afterwards  cleared  up It  is  remarkable, 

though  by  no  means  singular,  that  Jeremiah  should  pro- 
pose as  a  test  of  comparison  between  him  and  the  false 
prophets,  a  particular  event  that  was  to  fall  out,  not  before 
the  great  and  fatal  consummatiori,  but  was  to  form  a  con- 
stituent of  it.  Our  Saviour  Himself  proposes  signs  of  this 
kind ;  and  they  are  not  without  their  use,  as  demonstra- 
tions of  the  hand  of  God  that  might  impress  observers — 
whether  to  the  strengthening  of  their  faith  if  it  had  a  pre- 
vious being  within  them,  or  to  convince  those  who  till  then 
were  incredulous.  The  taking  away  of  the  vessels  of  the 
temple  may  have  had  the  effect  at  that  time  which  some 
of  our  Saviour's  predictions  had  on  His  disciples — when 


JEREMIAH  XXIX.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  385 


He  told  these  things  before  they  came  to  pass,  that  when 
they  did  come  to  pass  they  might  believe. 

March,  1847. 

Jeremiah  xxviii. — We  have  here  a  direct  collision  be- 
tween Jeremiah  and  the  false  prophet  Hananiah.  Jere- 
miah does  not  flinch  from  his  commission,  and  quotes  the 
old  prophets,  in  that  like  them  he  predicted  great  national 
calamities.  If  in  opposition  to  these  a  prophet  had  fore- 
told of  peace,  and  it  so  came  to  pass,  then  should  it  have 
been  known  that  he  and  not  they  was  the  genuine  mes- 
senger of  God.  Notwithstanding  this  challenge,  Hananiah 
persisted  in  affirming,  that  within  two  years  Nebuchad- 
nezzar's dominion  over  the  nations  should  cease.  But  a 
message  from  God  reassured  His  own  true  prophet — tell- 
ing Jeremiah  that  the  yokes  which  Hananiah  had  pro- 
nounced upon  as  if  they  were  to  be  broken  easily  like 
wood,  God  Himself  would  strengthen  into  yokes  of  iron. 
The  dominion  of  Nebuchadnezzar  is  confirmed ;  and  it  is 
added  as  before,  that  it  should  extend  to  the  beasts  of  the 
field  also.  And  the  death  also  was  denounced  on  Hana- 
niah, which  came  to  pass. 

Jeremiah  xxtx.  1-10. — Jeremiah  was  directed  to  hold 
converse  not  with  the  people  of  Judea  alone,  but  with 
those  who  had  been  carried  away  captive  to  Babylon  in 
the  preceding  reign.  The  letter  he  sent  to  them  was 
carried  by  the  ambassador  whom  Zedekiah  sent  to  Ne- 
buchadnezzar. His  message  to  them  harmonized  with 
all  that  he  had  been  telling  to  the  people  of  the  land  as 
to  the  length  of  the  captivity.  That  is  a  fine  direction 
which  he  gives  to  the  people  who  had  been  carried  away, 

VOL.  III.  R 


386  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,      jeremiah  xxix. 

even  that  they  should  seek  the  peace  of  the  city  in  which 
they  dwelt,  and  pray  to  the  Lord  for  it ;  for  that  their 
peace  was  bound  up  with  its  peace.  How  strongly  does 
this  inculcate  the  duty  of  loyalty  and  subjection,  and  all 
the  public  virtues  of  good  citizens  and  good  subjects. 
What  a  distinct  warning  against  false  prophets  !  and  what 
a  precise,  unambiguous  declaration  of  God's  purposes  in 
regard  to  their  coming  futurity !  The  period  of  their  stay 
in  Babylon  was  numerically  stated  and  made  known  to  be 
of  such  duration  as  might  well  resolve  them  to  live  in  it 
as  their  place  of  settlement. 

11-20. — God  unfolds  His  designs  of  mercy  and  restora- 
tion. His  thoughts  were  of  peace  and  not  of  evil,  so  as 
to  make  their  latter  end  an  object  of  hope. — My  God,  give 
me  to  search  for  Thee  with  all  my  heart,  that  I  may  find 
Thee.  Many  seek,  but  will  not  succeed.  Let  me,  there- 
fore, strive  with  all  earnestness.  Be  Thou  found  of  me, 
0  God,  even  as  Thou  wert  of  Israel  when  Thou  didst  recall 
them  from  captivity.  Recall  me,  0  God,  from  the  capti- 
vity of  sin  and  death  —  But  many  of  these  captives  were 
deluded  into  a  false  confidence  in  pretended  prophets  and 
diviners  among  themselves :  and  those  of  that  class  would 
say  that  we  shall  listen  to  them,  and  not  to  him  who 
sends  us  messages  from  a  distance.  In  opposition  there- 
fore to  these,  he  lets  them  understand  that  whereas  they 
had  been  deluded  into  the  hope  of  a  speedy  return  to  their 
o^AH  countrymen  in  Judea,  so  far  from  this  being  accom- 
plished, these  countiymen  should  themselves  be  dispersed 
and  carried  into  captivity,  and  become  the  contempt  and 
astonishment  of  man}^  nations — and  this  because  they  had 
not  hearkened  to  God's  true  prophets,  but  had  given  all  their 
confidence  to  impostors  and  deceivers — a  good  preparation 


jiREMiAH  XXX.        DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  387 

in  tlie  way  of  warning,  for  securing  the  attention  of  the 
captives,  with  whom  he  was  now  corresponding,  to  the 
subject-matter  wherewith  he  had  been  charged.  And  so 
he  calls  upon  them  to  give  their  attention,  and  hear  the 
words  of  the  Lord. 

21-32. — He  names  the  prophets  who  were  deceiving 
the  captives  in  Babylon,  and  a  terrible  doom  it  is  which 
he  pronounces  on  them.  We  can  imagine  how  they  should 
be  taken  up  as  political  offenders,  and  have  the  cruel  in- 
fliction of  their  very  terrible  death  laid  upon  them.  It 
seems  that  beside  being  impostors  they  were  men  of  very 
immoral  lives.  And  then  he  names  another  delinquent, 
who  took  upon  him  to  write  to  Jerusalem,  and  to  remon- 
strate with  the  people  there,  for  letting  Jeremiah,  whom 
he  denounced  as  a  false  prophet,  alone.  In  the  mutual 
correspondence  which  took  place  by  letters  between  the 
two  cities,  Shemaiah  let  those  in  Jerusalem  know  what 
Jeremiah  had  written  to  Babylon.  Zephaniah  was  second 
priest  when  Jerusalem  was  taken,  (ch.  lii.  24,)  and  may  have 
succeeded  to  Jehoiada,  perhaps  deposed  from  his  office,  so 
as  to  intimate  that  Shemaiah  might  incur  the  same  by 
his  negligence.  In  return  for  this,  Jeremiah  delivers  a 
prophetic  malediction  on  the  writer — even  that  he  himself 
should  be  cut  off,  and  if  not  childless  at  the  time,  that  his 
children  also  should  be  cut  off,  so  as  not  to  see  the  good 
which  God  had  in  reserve  for  His  people. 

Jeremiah  xxx.  1-11. — Now  comes  a  most  remarkable 
prophecy,  not  adequately  fulfilled  by  the  restoration  of 
Judah  from  Babylon,  and  pointing  therefore  to  a  future 
and  more  general  restoration,  comprehensive  both  of  Judah 
and  Israel — a  prophecy  therefore  which  it  is  well  to  have 


388  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READLNGS.        jeremiah  xxx. 

been  recorded  in  a  book,  that  we  on  whom  the  latter  ends 
of  the  world  have  come,  may  be  taught  what  the  things 
are  to  which  we  should  look  forward.  The  day  of  trouble 
that  is  associated  with  this  great  consummation,  seems  to 
be  the  period  when  there  shall  be  a  shaking  among  the 
nations,  prefigured  by  the  overthrow  of  Nebuchadnezzar's 
image,  at  the  time  when  the  ten  kingdoms  shall  become 
the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour.  The  Jews  will 
somehow  be  implicated  in  the  universal  commotion,  as  if 
to  be  assailed  by  the  potentates  of  this  world — an  event 
not  obscurely  intimated  in  other  places  of  Scripture.  But 
they  shall  be  saved  out  of  it;  and  the  happiness  of  the  mil- 
lennium shall  at  length  be  ushered  in,  as  if  the  fruit  of  a 
laborious  and  sore  travail.  Their  return  to  the  secure  pos- 
session of  their  own  land,  and  under  David  their  king,  as 
well  as  the  full  end  of  all  the  nations,  among  whom  they 
had  been  scattered,  are  events  that  still  lie  in  the  womb 
of  futurity. 

12-24. — The  bruise  of  Israel  was  incurable  by  man,  but 
all  things  are  possible  to  God.  They  had  been  delivered 
up  by  Him  to  the  power  of  their  enemies,  and  from  whom 
none  but  Himself  could  rescue  them.  And  He  will  at 
length  interpose  and  vindicate  before  the  whole  earth. 
His  own  special  relationship  with  the  people  whom  He 
had  chosen.  They  should  be  healed  of  their  wounds,  and 
recalled  from  the  outcast  places  among  which  they  had  been 
scattered.  The  goodly  temple  should  be  reared  on  its  old 
foundations,  which  was  typically  fulfilled  in  the  first  re- 
storation, and  will  be  substantially  fulfilled  in  the  second, 
when  the  true  religion  is  set  up  in  Jerusalem  as  the  eccle- 
siastical capital  of  the  world.  Among  other  blessings 
which  are  promised,  it  is  said  that  their  nobles  shall  be  of 


JEREMIAH  XXXI.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  389 

themselves,  or  tliey  shall  have  rulers  from  among  their 
own  people.  Maj  not  the  governor  be  Jesus  Christ,  a 
Jew  according  to  the  flesh,  but  who  engaged  His  heart  to 
approach  for  the  people  whom  He  redeemed  as  their 
surety  and  intercessor  before  God?  It  is  through  Him 
that  we  become  God's  people,  and  that  he  becomes  our 
God.  But  this  blessed  consummation  is  not  unaccom- 
panied with  mightj  calamities  and  commotions  on  the 
earth  ;  and  well,  may  we  repeat,  is  all  this  written  in  a 
book,  that  we  of  the  latter  days  might  consider  it. 

Jeremiah  xxxl  1-11. — The  prophecy  of  the  last  chapter 
continues,  and  with  a  heightening  evidence.  It  is  the 
time  of  the  final  restoration  which  I  believe  is  here  re- 
ferred to.  The  grace  which  Israel  is  to  find  in  the  wilder- 
ness, is  that  by  which  they  are  recalled  from  the  places  of 
their  dispersion,  and  conducted  to  their  ultimate  settle- 
ment in  their  o^vn  land.  Israel  may  here  be  saying 
through  the  prophet,  that  the  love  of  God  to  her  in  old 
times  was  again  to  be  manifested.  Their  prosperity  after 
their  restoration  is  illustrated  by  a  variety  of  images,  and 
among  others  that  they  should  eat  of  the  produce  of  their 
o^Ta.  industry,  with  perfect  security  and  freedom,  and 
under  no  such  restraint  as  was  laid  upon  them  by  the 
distinction  between  the  common  and  the  clean.  The  re- 
turn in  the  days  of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah,  forms  no  ade- 
quate counterpart  to  the  foretellings  of  this  magnificent 
chapter.  They  shall  yet  come  from  a  more  wide-spread 
and  general  captivity,  and  come  with  weeping  too — ^be- 
cause they  will  then  look  unto  Him  whom  they  have 
pierced,  and  weep  in  bitterness  as  for  a  first-born. 

12-20. — A  number  of  very  precious  notabilia  in  this 


390  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.      jeremiah  xxxt. 

passage. — Make  my  soul,  0  Grod,  as  a  well-watered  garden 

0  when  shall  this  general  conflux  to  Jerusalem  take  place  ! 

1  like  the  conception  of  men  flowing  together  to  the  good- 
ness of  Grod.  0  satisfy  me  with  Thy  goodness.  Give 
unction  and  all  the  richness  of  gospel  wisdom  and  com- 
fort to  the  priests,  that  these  may  flow  over  from  them  to 
the  people.  The  saying  by  Jeremiah  of  the  voice  heard 
in  Ramah,  is  quoted  in  the  Grospels  ;  but  such  mourning 
and  persecution  as  are  there  spoken  of,  will  be  exchanged 
in  better  times  for  the  security  and  the  comfort  of  bright 
and  quiet  dwelling-places.  Who  can  doubt  that  the  child- 
ren of  Israel  will  come  again  to  their  own  border  ? . . .  The 
expression  of  a  "bullock  unaccustomed  to  the  yoke''  is  quite 
a  notabile  ;  and  so  is  the  prayer  in  which  I  fervently  join 
— of  "  turn  me  and  I  shall  be  turned.''  Let  me  turn,  with- 
out waiting  for  a  certain  specific  degree  of  sensibility  and 
sorrow  for  sin — for  these  are  the  fruits  of  repentance,  and 
not  necessarily  its  first  impulses. — My  God,  take  me  into 
the  same  endearing  relation  with  Thyself  as  Thou  didst 
Ephraim.     0  have  mercy  on  me  and  sanctify  me  wholly. 

21-30. — The  "  way-marks,"  necessary  for  travellers 

Blayney  makes  the  woman  of  verse  22  to  signify  a  weak 
person  or  party,  who  shall  prevail  over  the  stronger  party. 
I  scarcely  think  that  such  an  interpretation  comports 
with  the  new  or  strange  thing  which  God  was  to  create 
on  the  earth.  It  would  seem  as  if  the  Israelites  were 
slow  to  return  from  Babylon,  and  many  were  so,  and  it  is 
this  which  calls  forth  the  remonstrance  that  is  here  ad- 
dressed to  them.  Perhaps  there  may  be  the  same  reluct- 
ance and  the  same  suasion  brought  to  bear  upon  it  in  our 
latter  days.  And  what  a  delightful  perspective  is  here 
opened  up  to  us Verse  26  conveys  the  idea  of  the 


JEREMIAH  XXXII.     DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  391 


prophet  having  been  in  vision.  But  what  is  said  to  him 
awake,  is  predictive  of  a  more  general  restoration  than 
that  from  Babylon.  Israel  and  Judah  have  yet  to  be  in- 
cited to  such  a  restoration.  They  will  at  length  be  esta- 
blished in  peace  and  plenty  in  their  own  land.  And  as 
they  had  long  suffered  for  the  sins  of  their  ancestors — this 
should  henceforward  cease,  and  every  man  suffer  only  fo: 
his  own  sins. 

31-40. — Surely  the  days  are  yet  to  come  when  this 
covenant  shall  be  entered  upon.  It  is  not  yet  that  all 
men  know  the  Lord,  from  the  least  unto  the  greatest. 
Hasten  this  universal  shower  of  grace,  0  Thou  most  High. 
. . .  What  a  notable  passage  is  this,  and  how  mightily  to  be 
prayed  over.  Put  Thy  law,  0  God,  into  my  inward  parts 
— write  it  in  my  heart ;  and  may  I  at  once  be  one  of  Thy 
regenerated  and  reconciled  children.  And  what  an  assur- 
ance we  here  have,  for  the  restoration  and  perpetuity  of 
Israel  as  a  nation.  Here  we  have  one  of  those  fine  in- 
stances, in  which  the  constancy  of  nature  is  appealed  to, 
as  a  guarantee  for  the  faithfulness  of  God's  word.  The 
nation  of  Israel,  and  as  a  nation,  will  last  as  long  as  the 
present  economy.  And  it  is  as  impossible  for  God  to  cast 
them  off,  as  for  man  to  explore  all  the  amplitudes  and 
profundities  of  the  universe.  These  noble  declarations 
in  regard  to  the  antitypical  are  followed  by  a  prophecy 
respecting  the  typical,  and  which  had  its  literal  fulfilment. 
— An  illustrious  chapter. 

Jeremiah  xxxii.  1-15. — This  prophecy  is  among  the 
later  ones  of  Jeremiah,  and  delivered  far  onward  in  the 
reign  of  Zedekiah,  at  the  time  when  Nebuchadnezzar  laid 
siege  to  Jerusalem.     Jeremiah  suffered  imprisonment  at 


392  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,     jeremiah  xxxij, 

:lie  hands  of  Zedekiali,  because  of  his  faitlifuhiess  as  a 
messenger  from  God.  What  Jeremiah  says  in  the  sixth 
/erse  and  forward,  is  not  in  answer  to  Zedekiah's  question, 
but  a  narrative  by  Jeremiah  of  a  forewarning  he  had  re- 
ceived from  God,  as  to  the  visit  that  was  to  be  paid  to  him 
jy  Hanameel,  and  then  of  the  actual  visit.  The  transaction 
here  described  was  itself  intended  as  a  prophecy.  It  took 
place  in  prison — that  is  the  purchase  of  the  land  before 
witnesses  in  the  court  of  the  prison.  The  small  price 
might  well  be  accounted  for,  even  though  there  was  a 
good  extent  of  land,  by  the  distance  of  the  possession — it 
being  now  in  possession  of  the  besiegers,  and  not  to  be 
entered  on  till  seventy  years,  the  period  of  the  captivity.  If 
the  deed  of  purchase  was  put  up  in  a  roll — then  before 
it  was  fully  rolled  up,  it  may  have  been  sealed,  so  as  to 
leave  the  upper  part  shut  up  till  litigation  or  some  other 
cause  might  render  it  necessary  to  examine  its  contents. 
The  lower  part  may  have  been  left  open. 

16-25. — In  this  prayer  of  Jeremiah  is  finely  blended 
the  natural  with  what  may  be  called  the  national  religion ; 
or  in  other  words,  where  God  is  described  in  His  attri- 
butes, and  with  relation  to  His  works ;  and  also  with  re- 
lation to  His  own  peculiar  people  ;  and  where  He  is  spoken 
of  both  in  reference  to  the  things  which  He  has  made,  and 
^0  that  sj^ecial  family  whom  He  2:)eculiarly  governed.  The 
infinite  power,  the  benevolence,  the  judicial  equity,  the 
gTeatness,  the  wisdom,  the  omniscience  of  God,  are  all  made 
nention  of  before  that  we  are  told  of  Him  as  the  God  of 
Israel,  and  of  His  miraculous  as  well  as  merciful  dealings 
with  this  selected  portion  of  mankind — ^though  these  were 
not  restricted  to  the  Hebrews  alone,  but  His  manifesta- 
tions were  also  amongst  other  men.    But  notwithstanding 


JEREMIAH  XXXII.     DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  393 

His  great  goodness  to  the  children  of  Israel,  they  had  not 
obeyed  Him — of  which  confession  is  made  in  this  prayer, 
and  also  recognition  of  the  evil  that  had  come  upon  them 
as  due  to  this  cause.  The  force  of  anns,  along  with  the 
famine  and  pestilence,  made  them  an  easy  prey  to  the 
Chaldeans.  Tliis  prayer  was  uttered  at  the  time  of  their 
close  investment — for  he  could  speak  of  the  mounts  which 
had  come  unto  the  city  to  take  it. 

26-35. — In  reply  to  this  prayer  God  lays  claim  to  omni- 
potence— "  Is  there  anything  too  hard  for  me  V ,..  Nebu- 
chadrezzar, so  often  called  in  this  Book,  from  the  simila- 
rity, I  should  think,  of  the  Hebrew  letters  r  and  n,  is 

properly  Nebuchadnezzar There  is  here  a  very  explicit 

indication  of  God's  judgment  in  the  destruction  of  JeiTi- 
salem.  The  "  rising  up  early,''  which  God  ascribes  to 
the  prophets,  He  also  ascribes  to  Himself:  it  may  sig- 
nify His  sending  them  prophets  in  good  time — His  giving 
them  timeous  warning  of  the  evil  and  danger  of  their 
doings — just  as  the  master  of  a  house  rises  early,  and 
assigns  their  respective  employments  to  the  various  officers 
of  his  household.  It  is  a  frequent  and  characteristic  ex- 
pression w^ith  Jeremiah,  and  gives  edge  to  the  remon- 
strances which  he  lifted  up  in  the  hearing  of  the  people. 
The  worship  of  Baal  is  spoken  of  as  their  chief  abomi- 
nation— a  great  step  in  advance  beyond  the  sin  of  Jero^ 
beam  wherewith  he  caused  Israel  to  sin.  And  yet  after 
all,  in  the  prospect  of  a  restoration,  Jeremiah  was  told  to 
buy  a  field  for  money,  and  to  take  witnesses. 

36-44. — Yet  in  judgment  does  the  Lord  remember 
mercy.  He  looks  beyond  the  temporaiy  evil  which  He 
is  to  inflict,  to  the  stable  and  everlasting  good  which  is 
in  reserve  for  His  people.     Their  light  and  temporaiy 

R  2 


394  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.   jERE>nAH  xxxnr. 

affliction  will  work  out  for  them  "  a  far  more  exceeding 
and  eternal  weight  of  glory/'  Yet  who  can  doubt  that  the 
first  restoration,  as  pre-signified  by  Jeremiah's  purchase 
of  land,  was  but  a  typical  one  ?  The  great  blessings  here 
foretold  are,  in  their  full  and  adequate  accomplishment, 
yet  to  come.  And  what  precious  notabilia  we  have  in  the 
setting  of  them  forth. — My  God,  put  Thy  fear  in  my  heart, 
that  I  may  not  depart  from  Thee ;  and  rejoice  over  me  to 
do  me  good.  Give  me  a  part  and  an  interest  in  Thine 
everlasting  covenant,  so  that  when  the  Son  of  man  cometh, 

I  may  be  counted  worthy  to  stand  before  Him The 

whole  of  Israel  are  promised  to  have  one  heart,  and  one 
way,  notwithstanding  their  long  separation  into  two  great 
branches,  and  the  strong  antipathy  of  these  against  each 
other.  But  this  heart  needs  to  be  given,  and  has  certainly 
not  yet  been  given,  to  the  effect  of  their  fearing  God  for 
ever,  and  of  God  never  turning  away  from  them ;  nor  to 
the  effect  of  the  Jews  never  departing  from  God — for 
they  have  made  a  grievous  and  general  departure,  from 
which  they  are  yet  to  be  recalled.  I  pray  for  that  one 
heart  and  spirit  which  will  lead  me  to  have  fellowship 
with  all  the  brethren. 

Jeremiah  xxxiii.  1-11. — Tlie  ''maker''  of  it  in  verse  2, 
if  translated  the  doer  of  it,  makes  the  thing  done  more 
intelligible.  God  is  the  fulfiller  of  the  prophecy  here 
given — He  who  framed  it,  and  will  bring  it  to  pass.  It 
is  an  ulterior  prophecy  of  far  distant  accomplishment — the 
prophecy  of  a  great  and  enduring  good  to  Israel,  after  the 
present  calamities  have  passed  away,  when  the  kings  of 
Judah  were  obstinately  holding  out  and  fighting  against 
the  Chaldeans,  and  bringing  death  and  desti*uction  upon 


JEREMIAH  XXXIII.   DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  395 

their  own  subjects  in  consequence.  What  exceeding  great 
and  j^recious  promises  are  these ;  but  on  the  Jewish  na- 
tion thej  are  obviously  not  yet  realized.  Reveal  to  me,  C 
God,  the  abundance  of  peace  and  truth. — What  a  blessed 
union  of  two  elements,  which  but  for  Christ  our  peace 
offering,  would  have  been  irreconcileably  and  for  ever  ai 
war !  ''  Acquaint  thyself  with  Thy  Maker,  and  be  ai 
peace.''  Verse  6 — a  notabile. — Cleanse  me  and  pardon  me. 
0  Grod.  Do  Thou,  the  very  God  of  peace,  sanctify  me 
wholly.    They  are  the  nations  who  will  tremble  when  God 

causes  to  return  the  captivity  of  the  land Mark  the  close 

accordance  between  verse  11  and  Ezra  iii.  11.  There  can 
be  no  doubt  of  a  close  accordancy  between  the  prophet 
and  the  historian  here — yet  while  we  admit  that  Jeremiah 
had  the  literal  fulfilment  now  past  in  his  eye,  this  does 
not  preclude  the  antitypical,  the  real  and  only  adequate 
fulfilment,  which  is  yet  to  come. 

12-26. — For  who  can  say  that  the  great  things  spoken 
of  in  this  passage  have  yet  obtained  their  verification  i 
Does  David  yet  execute  righteousness  and  judgment  in 
the  land  ?  or  has  his  house  been  there  established  in  un- 
changeable or  everlasting  dynasty  ?  or  can  Jerusalem  yet, 
or  ever  since  the  first  captivity,  be  rightly  denominated — 
"  The  Lord  our  Righteousness  ?" — What  a  precious  notabile 

is  verse  16 Though  in  verse  18  the  images  are  taken 

from  the  ritual  of  Moses,  yet  may  they  signify  the  due 
observance  of  a  more  spiritual  worship.  And  an  appeal 
is  again  made  to  the  constancy  of  nature,  not  more  in- 
frangible than  are  the  promises  of  God.  What  a  blessed 
counteractive  to  the  usual  philosophical  habit,  did  we  make 
the  invariableness  of  those  sequences  which  obtain  in  the 
world  of  experience  to  aliment  and  sustain  our  faith  in 


396  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,    jeremiah  xxxir. 

the  sureness  of  every  declaration  which  occurs  in  the 
Vlord  of  the  living  God.  It  seems  the  more  obvious  sense 
of  verse  24  that  the  two  families  of  Israel  and  Judah  are 
here  spoken  of  Blayney  thinks,  from  verse  26,  that  they 
are  the  two  families  of  Jacob  and  David — though  some 
understand  it  of  the  royal  and  sacerdotal  families. — Let  me 
cherish  the  assured  hope  of  great  things  yet  to  be  done 
for  these  families — as  assured  as  my  confidence  in  the  suc- 
cessions of  day  and  night,  or  the  regularity  of  those  move- 
ments which  take  place  in  the  firmament  of  heaven. 

Jeremiah  xxxiv.  1-11. — It  is  supposed  that  the  pro- 
phecy of  verses  2-5  were  delivered  at  the  time  that  Nebu- 
chadnezzar s  army  was  engaged  with  the  sieges  of  Jeru- 
salem and  the  other  cities  of  Judea,  previous  to  the 
diversion  which  took  place  at  the  approach  af  the  army 
from  Eg}^t,  when  Nebuchadnezzar  had  to  quit  Jerusalem 
for  a  season.  He  tells  Zedekiah  what  the  final  issue  of 
the  invasion  should  be — ^his  own  peaceful  end,  but  as  a 
captive  in  Babylon,  whose  king  his  own  eyes  should  be- 
hold ;  but  it  is  not  said  here  that  by  the  order  of  Nebu- 
chadnezzar his  eyes  were  to  be  taken  out — a  most  barba- 
rous infliction,  and  still  practised  in  the  East.  At  this 
time  there  was  a  reformation  agreed  to,  and  actually  en- 
tered upon,  that  all  should  grant  liberty  to  their  Hebrew 
seiTants  whom  they  had  held  as  slaves — from  which,  how- 
ever, they  turned  back,  it  is  supposed  in  consequence  of 
the  respite  they  obtained  by  the  temporary  retreat  of  the 
invaders  when  their  alarm  had  subsided. 

12-22. — But  God,  who  is  the  friend  of  the  oppressed, 
interposed  with  another  message  to  Jeremiah,  expressive 
of  the  sense  that  He  had  of  this  unfaithfulness  to  the 


JEREMIAH  XXXV.     DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  397 


covenant  on  which  they  had  entered.  And  the  vengeance 
He  denounces  upon  them  is— that  as  thev  had  made  free 
with  their  brethren  in  again  laying  upon  them  the  yoke 
of  slavery,  so  He  would  give  a  commission  to  the  minis- 
ters of  His  wrath — to  the  sword,  and  the  pestilence,  and 
the  famine,  that  they  should  make  free  with  these  treach- 
erous and  tyrannical  men,  and  wreak  in  full  measure  their 
severities  upon  them ....  To  "  pass  between  the  parts  of  a 
divided  calf'  was  one  method  of  ratifying  a  covenant,  and 
signified  a  sort  of  imprecation  upon  themselves,  to  be  cut 
in  two  in  like  manner,  should  they  violate  the  agreement 
which  they  had  made.  God  would  no  longer  bear  with 
men  who  had  been  guilty  both  of  perfidy  and  of  cruel 
oppression.  Their  dead  bodies  should  be  dissevered  into 
morsels  for  the  beasts  and  the  fowls— and  this  upon  the 
return  of  those  armies  whose  temporary  retreat  had  em- 
boldened them  to  so  gross  a  delinquency. 

Jeremiah  xxxv. — The  Rechabites  were  a  family  of  the 
Kenites,  (1  Chron.  ii.  55,)  who  were  the  descendants  of 
Jethro  or  Hobab.  (Num.  x.  29  ;  see  Judges  i.  16.)  They 
fonned  a  Temperance  Society,  and  such  societies  at  pre- 
sent take  their  name.  But  they  were  members  by  de- 
scent, not  by  their  own  individual  choice — the  obser^^ances 
being  laid  upon  them  by  a  distant  ancestor — Jonadab, 
said°to  be  the  son  of  Rechab.  This  is  the  Jonadab  of 
whom  it  is  written  in  2  Kings  x.  15-28,  that  Jehu  took 
him  up  into  his  chariot,  and  carried  him  along  to  the 
slaughter  of  the  priests  of  Baal.  They  had  no  settled 
habitation  in  houses,  but  dwelt  in  tents,  leading  a  noma- 
dic life.  They  were  forced,  however,  to  take  refuge  in 
Jerusalem  at  the  time  of  the  Babylonish  invasion ;  and  it 


398  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,    jeremiah  xxxvr. 

was  then  that  Jeremiah  made  the  experiment,  the  issue 
of  which  was  so  much  to  their  honour.  The  contrast 
between  their  fidelity  to  the  injunctions  of  their  earthly 
father,  with  the  disobedience  of  the  Jews  to  their  heavenly 
Father,  carried  in  it  a  lesson  of  rebuke  which  Jeremiah 
urges  in  this  chapter  upon  his  countrjTiien.  The  promise 
made  to  the  Rechabites  may  signify  not  only  that  the 
family  of  Jonadab  should  never  be  extinct,  but  that  in  every 
generation  there  should  be  among  them  some  worshippers 
of  the  true  God. — Let  me  record  my  sense  of  the  value  of 
temperance,  and  my  friendliness  to  temperance  societies. 

Jeremiah  xxxvi.  1-10. — This  book  as  being  a  record 
of  all  the  prophecies  which  Jeremiah  had  uttered  since 
the  days  of  Josiah,  may  have  been  the  embryo  or  first 
draft  of  the  book  now  before  us,  and  forming  an  integral 
part  of  our  Scriptures.  It  is  very  interesting  to  note  the 
origin  and  first  formation  of  our  canonical  Scriptures,  and 
the  transitions  made  from  spoken  to  written  revelations. 
It  would  seem  as  if  this  commission  were  given  to  Baruch 
when  Jeremiah  was  in  confinement.  It  was  certainly  a 
very  impressive  method  of  dealing  with  the  people — giving 
them  another  chance,  if  we  may  so  speak,  of  repenting 
and  being  forgiven,  while  the  "may  be''  of  verse  7  shows 
that  the  event  was  spoken  of  as  an  uncertainty  by  the 
prophet — though  it  could  be  no  uncertainty  to  Him 
who  knoweth  all  things  from  the  beginning.  Yet  even 
He  multiplies  His  warnings,  to  reclaim  or  condemn  the 
more  those  whom  He  addresses. 

11-20. — Jeremiah  seems  not  to  have  compiled  the  book 
that  Baruch  wrote,  from  pre^dous  ^Titings,  but  to  have 
dictated  the  words  anew,  which  Baruch  received  at  his 


JEREMIAH  xxxvr.   DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  399 

mouth,  and  wrote  down  after  him.  This,  we  should  believe, 
was  done  not  by  natural  memory  alone,  but  with  the  aid  of 
that  Spirit  who  brings  all  things  to  remembrance — or  by 
inspiration  in  one  of  its  particular  forms.  (See  John  xiv. 
26.)  Blayney  looks  upon  the  "  ink''  of  verse  18  as  a  mis- 
translation, and  that  it  should  be  rendered  "after  him," 
implying  the  exact  conformity  between  BarucVs  writing 
and  Jeremiah's  words.  The  reading  told  upon  the  fears 
and  consciences  of  the  nobles,  and  they  were  thrown  into 
consternation  by  it.  They  were  friendly,  it  would  appear, 
to  the  prophet — but  afraid  of  the  king ;  and,  anxious  for 
the  life  both  of  Jeremiah  and  his  amanuensis,  bade  them 
go  hide  themselves.  The  word  did  not  return  void,  and 
we  have  many  instances  both  in  Scriptural  and  succeed- 
ing history  of  grandees  and  officers  of  the  royal  household 
having  given  in  to  the  truth,  when  the  pride  and  policy 
of  their  superiors  were  all  against  them. 

21-82. — But  there  were  other  grandees,  and  more  espe- 
cially the  king  himself,  who  had  no  such  scruples,  and 
more  of  hardihood.  Jehudi  does  not  seem  to  have  read 
the  whole  of  this  roll,  but  only  three  or  four  leaves,  or 
rather  sections  of  it ;  and  when  he  did  bum  it,  it  must 
have  been  by  an  order  from  the  king,  whose  doing,  as  in 
verses  24-29,  it  properly  was.  It  was  truly  a  daring  act, 
and  called  forth  the  intercessions  of  so  many  of  his  officers 
to  prevent  it;  but  it  was  followed  by  a  commensurate 
penalty — for  while  God  protected  His  own  servants,  hid- 
ing them  from  the  king  who  sought  to  destroy  them,  He 
sent  forth  on  the  king  himself  a  fresh  denunciation — not 
only  reiterating  what  had  often  been  told  of  the  entire 
overthrow  of  the  state  by  the  king  of  Babylon,  but  per- 
sonally signalizing  Jehoiakim  himself  as  the  object  of 


400  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,  jeremiah  xxxvii. 

His  special  vengeance.  His  son  Jehoiacliin  was  detlironed 
wlien  a  child ;  and  Zedekiah,  though  called  his  brother, 
■vvas  but  his  uncle,  and  therefore  not  the  son  of  Jehoiakim 
— so  that  speedily  he  had  no  descendants  to  sit  upon  his 
throne.  Besides  this  his  body  was  exposed  to  indignities, 
in  contradistinction  to  Zedekiah,  who  was  buried  with 
royal  honours.  The  roll  that  had  been  burnt  was  not 
only  replaced,  but  expanded  by  Jeremiah,  probably  not 
very  much  unlike  the  present  book,  and  there  are  few 
pieces  in  Scripture  which  afford  such  an  insight  into  their 
literary  origin. 

Jeremiah  xxxvii.  1-10. — Coniah  is  the  same  with  Je- 
hoiachin.  Zedekiah  with  all  his  wickedness  had  a  respect 
for  the  prophet — a  phenomenon  not  at  all  unusual,  and  a 
certain  sense  of  his  authority  and  truth  as  a  minister  of 
God,  His  reply  to  Zedekiah's  message  was  fitted  to  dis- 
sipate the  false  security  into  which  he  may  have  been  led 
by  the  retreat  of  the  Babylonish  army  for  a  time  from 
Jerusalem.  It  is  an  earnest  warning  to  the  Jewish 
monarch  against  the  deceitful  expectation  of  his  safety — 
for  that  Nebuchadnezzar  would  again  return — nothing 
baffled  by  the  army  from  Egypt  whom  he  would  soon  be 
rid  of,  and  come  back  upon  Jerusalem,  and  bum  it  with 
fire.  So  fixed  was  this  purpose  and  predetermination 
on  the  part  of  God,  that  no  human  contingency  would 
overthrow  it — for  even  though  the  Chaldeans  should  be 
defeated  with  great  slaughter,  would  they  again  rise  in 
strength  given  them  from  on  high  to  execute  His  pleasure. 

11-21. — ^When  the  Chaldeans  retreated  for  a  time  Jere- 
miah made  the  attempt  to  escape  from  Jerusalem — not 
foreseeing,  though  a  prophet,  what  the  consequences  would 


JEREMIAH  XXXVIII.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  401 

be.  Prophets  had  only  special  revelations  for  special  ob- 
jects ;  and  though  God  had  His  designs  in  the  imprison- 
ment of  Jeremiah,  yet  was  the  fact  of  his  imprisonment 
not  made  known  to  him  beforehand.  The  princes  had 
probably  suspected  his  design  to  fall  off  to  the  Chaldeans, 
aware  that  he  always  prophesied  in  their  favour.  It  was 
not  till  after  many  days,  probably  after  the  return  of  the 
Chaldeans  from  their  engagement  with  the  Egyptians, 
that  Zedekiah  sent  for  him,  when  he  delivered  his  com- 
mission without  fear,  and  remonstrated  on  the  treatment 
that  he  had  gotten  from  his  nobles.  And  from  the  ques- 
tion of  verse  1 9,  it  would  appear  that  the  Chaldeans  were 
again  upon  them.  The  dungeon  must  have  been  in  the 
house  of  Jonathan  the  scribe — perhaps  its  sunk  story — 
whereas  the  court  of  the  prison  was  in  the  king's  house, 
(ch.  xxxii.  2,)  Zedekiah's  disposition  to  befriend  Jeremiah 
is  manifest  on  this  and  other  occasions. 

Jeremiah  xxxviii.  1-18. — We  can  easily  enter  into  the 
feelings  and  apprehensions  of  those  who  feared  lest  this 
prophecy  of  Jeremiah  should  lead  to  a  general  desertion 
of  Jerusalem,  by  its  inhabitants  and  defenders.  In  their 
state  of  infatuation  and  incredulity  such  a  dread  of  the 
consequences  was  quite  natural.  And  Zedekiah,  notwith- 
standing his  own  personal  disposition  in  favour  of  Jere- 
miah, felt  himself  to  be  a  limited  monarch,  and  was  obliged 
to  yield.  The  dungeon  in  which  he  was  now  placed  differed 
from  that  of  ch.  xxxvii.  20  ;  but  both  probably  resembled 
each  other  in  this  respect : — The  houses  of  the  great,  as 
of  Jonathan  and  Malchiah,  were  quadrangles  surrounding 
an  open  space,  in  which  dungeons  might  have  been  sunk 
in  the  form  of  wells  with  side-chambers  at  the  bottom,  for 


402  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,  jeremiah  xxxviii. 

tlie  separate  prisoners.  Hence  the  mire,  if  left  open  at 
top  for  light  and  air.  But  God  raised  up  friends  for 
Jeremiah  even  in  this  his  great  extremity.  There  were 
human  hearts  which  felt  for  him  ;  and  one  rejoices  in  the 
sympathy  of  this  stranger,  this  Ethiopian,  Ebed-melech. 
And  he  stirred  up  the  same  feeling  in  the  bosom  of  the 
monarch,  who  could  no  longer  resist  the  compassionate 
impulse,  though  he  braved  the  displeasure  of  his  princes 
by  giving  way  to  it.  He  was  accordingly  brought  out  of 
the  dungeon,  and  replaced  where  he  was  formerly,  in  the 
court  of  the  prison,  where  he  would  have  some  sort  of  out- 
house covering  for  his  accommodation. 

14-28. — Zedekiah,  under  strong  apprehensions  of  Jere- 
miah being  the  person  who  could  tell  him  the  truth,  sent 
for  him  ;  and  the  prophet  proposed  to  him  an  alternative, 
which  like  David's  consultation  respecting  Keilah,  affords 
another  example  of  what  the  schoolmen  term  the  "  Scien- 
tia  Media.''  It  was  a  prediction  that  hinged  upon  condi- 
tions— a  conditional  prophecy.  He  tells  the  king  that  in 
place  of  the  mockery  which  he  was  groundlessly  afraid  of 
should  he  go  over  to  the  Chaldeans,  if  he  did  not  go  there 
awaited  him  the  upbraidings  of  those  in  his  own  house- 
hold. Zedekiah  obeyed  not  the  warning,  yet  was  true  to 
his  own  promise  that  he  would  save  Jeremiah's  life.  It 
proves  his  subjection  to  the  grandees  around  him,  that  he 
laid  on  Jeremiah  the  concealment  from  them  of  the  inter- 
view he  had  had  with  himself,  and  concealment,  too,  at 
the  expense  of  a  falsehood  to  which  the  prophet  gave  in. 
It  seems  obvious  that  Zedekiah  was  a  weak  and  vacillat- 
ing prince  ;  but  alike  obvious  that  the  prophet's  morality 
was  not  so  perfect  or  pure  as  it  might  have  been  in  a 
more  advanced  stage  of  the  Divine  Economy. 


JEREMIAH  XL.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  403 

Jeremiah  xxxix. — In  this  narration  of  tlie  destruction 
of  Jerusalem,  we  have  additions  to  the  two  former  in 
Kings  and  Chronicles.  These  barbarous  names  impress 
more  forcibly  the  horrors  of  such  an  occasion.  "What 
cruelty  in  war ! — The  slaying  of  Zedekiah's  sons  before 
his  eyes,  previous  to  the  putting  out  of  his  own  eyes,  was  a 
sad  piece  of  barbarity.  But  mixed  with  all  this  ferocity 
in  the  conqueror,  was  there  a  kindly,  perhaps  a  grateful, 
or  even  a  religious  feeling  in  his  heart  towards  Jeremiah, 
of  whom  he  might  have  heard  from  the  report  of  those 
Jews  who  fell  off  to  the  Chaldeans.  The  home  to  which 
he  should  be  canied  was  perhaps  Anathoth.  Nebuchad- 
nezzar was  the  instrument  of  God's  providential  care  for 
His  own  prophet.  God  overruled  all  for  the  good  of  His 
own.  In  virtue  of  that  perfect  command  which  He  has 
over  the  wills  and  the  ways  of  all  men,  did  He  avert  the 
hostility  of  the  foe  from  Ebed-melech,  as  from  Jeremiah, 
extending  His  protection  to  them  both. 

April,  1847. 
Jeremiah  xl. — The  history  is  caiTied  on  in  a  few  his- 
torical chapters,  inserted  in  this  book  of  the  prophecy  of 
Jeremiah.  Jeremiah  after  being  rescued  from  prison,  must 
have  mingled  with  the  people,  and  been  bound  in  chains 
along  with  them,  after  which  Nebuzar-adan  got  hold  of 
him,  and  released  him  a  second  time.  The  captain  of 
the  guard  discovers  his  knowledge  of  the  relation  in  which 
the  Jews  stood  to  their  God  ;  and  there  is  no  saying  how 
great  the  influence  may  have  been  of  the  state  and  history 
of  the  chosen  people  on  the  theology  of  their  neighbours. 
Jeremiah  had  his  choice  of  going  and  settling  where  he 
liked,  and  when  his  preference  was  made  for  his  own  land 


404  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         jeremiah  xli. 

rather  tlian  Babylon,  he  was  recommended  to  put  him- 
self under  the  protection  of  the  governor.  Upon  this  ar- 
rangement being  made,  the  straggling  military  of  the 
provinces  put  themselves  under  his  protection  also.     It 

was  felt  an  eligible  thing  even  bj  Jews  at  a  distance 

Gedaliah  was  a  Jew  who  had  the  confidence  of  the  Chal- 
deans, and  was  in  their  interest — perhaps  one  of  those 
who  had  come  over  to  them  from  Jerusalem  before  it  was 
taken.  We  have  a  trait  of  his  father  in  ch.  xxvi.  24.  But 
there  was  a  hostile  feeling  against  this  Jewish  remnant  in 
the  mind  of  the  king  of  the  Ammonites,  that  afterwards 
led  to  disastrous  consequences. 

Jeremiah  xli. — Poor  Gedaliah  suffered  for  his  confi- 
dence in  Ishmael,  the  emissary  of  the  king  of  the  Am- 
monites, and  so  fell  by  the  hands  of  this  assassin.  He 
was  a  deceitful  as  well  as  a  bloody  man  ;  and  after  hav- 
ing slain  Gedaliah  and  his  companions,  it  would  seem  as 
if  his  appetite  for  human  life  had  been  whetted  by  indul- 
gence. Such  references  as  the  one  we  have  here,  made  to 
what  had  been  done  by  king  Asa,  serxe  to  bind  these  Scrip- 
tural naiTatives  into  a  continuous  history  —  The  king's 
daughters  it  would  seem  had  been  spared  from  the  gene- 
ral captivity  of  the  people  to  Babylon,  but  were  now  in 
danger  of  a  worse  captivity  than  it.  But  Johanan  who 
had  so  faithfully  warned  Gedaliah  of  his  danger,  went  in 
pursuit  of  him  ;  and  though  Ishmael  effected  his  escape, 
yet  did  Johanan  rescue  all  whom  he  had  taken.  They 
felt  afi'aid  however  of  the  Chaldeans,  who  might  so  far 
misunderstand  the  part  which  they  had  in  these  pro- 
ceedings, that  they  might  deal  with  them  as  rebels  and 
enemies. 


JEREMIAH  xLii.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  405 

Jeremiah  xlii.  1-7. — But  Johanan — thougli  he  acted  a 
righteous  part  in  the  matter  of  Gedaliah,  jet  was  his 
heart  not  right  or  steadfast  with  God.  There  was  some- 
thing like  the  double-mindedness  of  Balaam  in  his  cha- 
racter. He  would  have  had  a  divine  sanction  for  the  step 
to  which  his  heart  was  secretly  inclined.  To  Egypt  he  and 
the  people  had  a  desire  to  go,  from  the  fears  they  had  of 
Babylon ;  and  for  aught  that  appears,  from  a  preference  for 
Egypt  as  their  future  residence,  because  of  attractions  not 
here  explained.  It  is  not  a  little  remarkable  that  with 
the  consciousness  they  had  of  their  own  wishes,  if  not  in- 
deed resolutions,  they  should  have  pledged  themselves  so 
strongly  to  Jeremiah,  that  they  would  follow  the  counsel 
which  he  should  ask  and  the  Lord  should  give,  regard- 
ing their  future  movements.  Perhaps  they  indulged  the 
hope  of  conciliating  the  prophet  to  their  own  views,  or 
perhaps  were  unaware  of  the  strength  of  their  own  incli- 
nations. 

8-22. — Jeremiah's  deliverance  was  a  very  distinct  one, 
and  ought  to  have  been  authoritative  on  men  who  had  so 
pledged  themselves  to  obey.  The  expression  of  God  re- 
penting, though  much  commented  on  with  the  view  of 
explaining  it  away,  is  nevertheless  of  frequent  occurrence 
in  the  Bible.  There  was  a  great  want  of  faith,  in  their 
giving  way  as  they  did  to  their  groundless  fear  of  the 
king  of  Babylon.  Blayney  instead  of  making  Jeremiah 
say  in  verse  12,  "  God  will  cause  you  to  return,''  renders  it 
"  God  will  settle  you  in  your  own  land" — which  is  more 
in  harmony  with  their  actual  situation,  as  being  now  in 
Judea.  It  would  seem  from  verse  14,  that  Egypt  had 
positive  recommendation  of  its  own,  besides  its  being  a 
place   of   escape   from   the   Chaldeans.     There   is   here, 


406  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,      jeremiah  xlixi. 

however,  a  very  peremptory  announcement  of  the  evil 
consequences  that  would  ensue  upon  their  taking  the  step 
of  going  down  to  Egypt ;  and  along  with  this  an  exposure 
by  Jeremiah  of  their  hypocrisy,  in  having  consulted  him 
upon  the  subject,  and  professing  that  they  would  act  on 
the  response  which  he  would  give  them  from  the  Lord. 
It  is  marvellous  that  they  should  have  pei'sisted  in  their 
infatuation  in  the  face  of  that  evidence  which  Jeremiah 
gave  of  his  supernatural  discernment,  when  he  told  them 
of  the  things  which  were  in  their  heart — but  not  more 
marvellous  than  many  similar  exhibitions  of  the  same 
perv^ersity  in  the  midst  of  miracles. 

Jeremiah  xliii. — The  warnings  of  Jeremiah  proved 
ineffectual.  The  people  to  whom  they  were  addressed 
belied  their  promises  and  professions.  They  charged  the 
prophet  with  falsely  pretending  a  message  from  God,  when 
he  was  acting  only  upon  the  instigation  of  BaiTich.  And 
so  they  walked  in  the  counsel  of  their  hearts,  and  would 
none  of  the  reproof  or  instruction  of  this  true  jorophet, 
w^hom  yet  themselves  had  consulted.  The  king's  poor 
daughters  are  specified  among  those  whom  they  dragged 
along  with  them  to  Egypt ;  and  they  also  forced  both 
Jeremiah  and  Baruch  to  be  of  their  company.  This 
flagrant  act  of  disobedience  called  forth  another  inter- 
position from  above.  Jeremiah  was  commissioned  to  pro- 
phesy anew  unto  these  rebels.  That  Kebuchadnezzar 
from  whom  they  fled  would  have  let  tliem  alone,  had  they 
remained  in  Judea  ;  but  their  flight  led  him  to  pursue, 
and  he  overtook  them  in  the  place  to  which  they  had  re- 
paired for  security. — The  evil  which  they  tried  to  shun 
they  brought  upon  themselves. 


JEREMIAH  xLiv.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  407 

Jeremiah  xliv.  1-10. — But  the  denunciations  of  the 
last  chapter  were  lost  upon  these  pen'erse  and  stiffnecked 
people,  the  genuine  descendant?  of  their  alike  rebellious 
fathers  before  them.  It  is  strange  that  the  recent  de- 
struction of  Jerusalem — so  manifestly  a  judgment  from  the 
God  of  Heaven,  did  not  tell  upon  them.  In  defiance  of 
all  their  o^vn  experience  of  its  evils,  and  the  solemn  voice 
of  the  prophet,  did  they  lapse  into  the  idolatries  of  the 
land,  whither  they  had  come.  The  example  of  all  former 
chastisements  seems  to  have  been  quite  lost  upon  them. — 
My  God,  let  not  Thine  earnest  dissuasive  from  the  abo- 
minable thing  which  Thou  hatest  be  lost  upon  me.  Save 
me  from  the  fascinations  of  a  most  seductive  idolatry 
to  which  I  have  so  often  given  way.  Send  Thy  Holy 
Spirit  to  strengthen  me  with  strength  in  my  soul.  Enable 
me  to  turn  my  sight  and  eyes  from  viewing  vanity.  Thou 
knowest  my  infirmities  and  besetting  sins.    Help  me,  help 

me,  0  God Blayney  makes  the  wickedness  of  their  v/ives 

in  verse  9,  to  be  that  of  Judah's  princes. 

11-19. — They  were  those  Jews  who  had  set  their  faces 
to  go  to  Egypt  (verse  12)  who  were  to  fall  in  that  land — • 
for  it  is  obvious  from  verse  28,  that  some  were  to  escape 
the  coming  destruction  which  was  to  take  place  there, 
8uch  perhaps  as  had  been  previously  settled  there,  or  such 
as  had  been  dragged  to  it,  like  Jeremiah  and  Baruch, 
against  their  will.  The  famine  might  well  have  been  the 
effect  of  a  wasteful  invasion  ;  and  the  conjunction  again  of 
pestilence  with  famine  is  the  effect  of  a  general  law  of 
which  now  we  have  sad  experience  in  Ireland,  and  it  is  to 
be  feared  in  our  own  Highlands.  None,  however  desirous, 
were  to  return  to  Judea,  but  a  very  few,  and  these  few 
such  as  had  not  rebelliously — and  against  the  warning  of 


408  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,      jeremiah  xliv. 

tlie  prophet,  set  their  faces  to  come  down  to  Egypt.  In 
the  face,  however,  of  all  these  fell  denunciations,  these 
stout-hearted  people  were  bent  upon  dying  hard — both 
the  men  who  were  conscious  of  their  wives'  idolatry,  and 
the  wives  themselves,  daring  the  prophet's  menaces,  and 

expressing  their  determination  to  act  in  their  own  way 

What  is  here  rendered  the  queen  of  heaven,  the  Septuagint 
in  ch.  vii.  18,  renders  the  army  or  host  of  heaven.  The 
consent,  whether  tacit  or  expressed,  of  the  husband,  was 
necessary  ere  the  vows  of  their  wives  could  be  of  force  and 
obligation,  (Num.  xxx.,)  and  it  would  seem  as  if  for  this 
reason  the  women  in  verse  19 — here  giving  an  account  of 
themselves,  alleged  the  presence  and  privacy  of  their  hus- 
bands to  the  matters  of  which  they  were  accused. 

20-30. — It  is  strange  that  they  should  have  argued 
their  prosperity  in  Jerusalem  when  they  worshipped  there 
the  queen  of  heaven.  But  Jeremiah  meets  this  with  the 
opposite  refutation — that  because  of  this  and  such  like 
idolatrous  worship,  Jerusalem  was  destroyed.  And  the 
same  unchangeable  Grod  they  would  find  to  be  as  intole- 
rant of  their  idolatry  in  Judea  as  He  had  been  in  Egypt 
And  he  accordingly  denounces  on  all  men  and  women 
alike,  the  evil  that  would  certainly  befall  them.  The  men 
and  their  wives  were  held  to  be  equal  participators  in  the 
guilt — for  (verse  19)  the  men  consented  to  the  transgres- 
sion, which  by  the  hands  of  their  wives  had  been  perpe- 
trated. Among  other  evils,  the  last  remainders  of  the 
true  religion  should  be  extinguished  among  those  who  re- 
mained in  the  land ;  nor  would  any  remain  long  there, 
for  a  process  of  consumption  should  go  on  till  a  full  end 
was  made  of  them.  Some  would  make  good  their  escape 
to  the  land  of  Judea^  though  none  of  those  (verse  14)  who 


j£REMiAH  XLvi.      DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  409 


had  willingly  gone  with  Johanan  to  Egypt,  for  tlie  purpose 
of  dwelling  there.  They  who  did  remain  would  obtain 
full  proof  of  the  truth  of  the  prophecy,  in  the  judgment 
which  it  threatened  coming  to  pass. 

Jeremiah  xlv. — There  is  an  obvious  anachronism  here 
in  the  order  of  the  chapters,  as  there  is  in  a  good  many 
other  instances  in  this  Book.  This  chapter  should  have 
been  placed  after  ch.  xxxvi.  The  fright  into  which  Baruch 
was  thrown  may  have  been  after  his  first  ^vriting  of  the  roll 
of  curses  against  Jerusalem,  in  ch.  xxxvi.  4,  or  after  his 
second  writing  in  ch.  xxxvi.  32.  The  object  of  Jeremiah's 
message  to  him  from  the  Lord,  is  first  to  assure  him  of  the 
certain  fulfilment  of  the  predictions  which  had  just  been 
•written  ;  and,  secondly,  to  assure  him  of  his  own  personal 
safety — an  assurance  made  good,  as  we  find  that  he  sur- 
vived the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  accompanied 
Jeremiah  to  Egypt.  He  was  made  an  exception  to  the 
general  ruin  when  evil  was  brought  upon  all  flesh. — 0  let 
me  here  take  the  lesson  of  seeking  not  great  things  for 
myself  Is  not  life  more  than  meat,  and  the  body  than 
raiment  ?  Let  me  have  Thy  favour,  0  God,  which  is  better 
than  life,  and  then  why  do  I  care  for  the  rest  ? . . .  Verse  5 
is  a  notabile. 

Jeremiah  xlvl  1-12. — Now  follows  a  collection  of  pro- 
phecies, of  which  the  first  verse  of  this  chapter  might  be 
regarded  as  the  general  title — prophecies  against  the 
Gentiles,  and  whereof  the  first  is  directed  against  Egypt. 
We  cannot  expect  such  an  interpolation  to  join  on,  in 
respect  of  chronology,  with  the  prophecies  before  and 
after,  which  relate  to  the  Jews;  and  so  this  prophecy 

VOL.  III.  s 


410  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,      jeremiah  xlvi. 

regarding  Egj^pt  dcates  as  far  back  as  the  reign  of  Je- 
hoiakim.  Pharaoh  with  his  army  progressed  as  far  as  the 
Euphrates,  where  he  was  defeated  by  Nebuchadnezzar  the 
king  of  Babylon.  The  prophet  here  indulges  in  a  spirited 
military  description.  There  is  something  highly  poetical  in 
the  personifications  of  Scripture — as  here  of  'Egji^t  It  is 
described  by  its  floods  and  rivers,  and  so  characteristically. 
The  chronology  of  this  prophecy  accords  well  with  that  in 
the  direct  history.  (2  Chron.xxxv.  20,  &c.)  Pharaoh-Necho 
must  have  been  on  his  way  to  Euphrates  when  Josiah 
encountered  him  and  Avas  slain.  The  same  Pharaoh  was 
at  Jerusalem  a  few  months  after  when  he  made  Jehoia- 
kim  king,  in  the  fourth  year  of  whose  reign  we  find  him 
at  Euphrates,  where  he  was  defeated  by  the  king  of  Baby- 
lon, who  afterwards  came  to  Jerusalem  and  took  Jehoia- 
kim  captive. 

13-28. — This  is  a  second  prophecy  regarding  Egypt, 
distinct  from,  and  of  considerably  posterior  fulfilment  to, 
the  former.  In  the  one  we  have  the  defeat  of  the  Egyp- 
tian invasion  upon  Babylon  at  the  river  Euj^hrates  ;  in  the 
other  the  triumph  of  the  Babylonish  captivity  upon  Egypt 
— this  latter  being  also  the  subject  of  Ezekiel's  prophecy 
in  ch.  xxix.-xxxii.     It  would  seem  as  if  the  prophecy 

was  delivered  by  Jeremiah  when  in  Egypt,  verse  14 

Verse  16  is  the  cry  of  Egypt's  allies  on  the  eve  of  taking 
flight  to  their  respective  countries.  They  complain  of 
Pharaoh  as  not  having  been  punctual  to  his  appointment. 
Egypt,  thus  deserted  by  her  auxiliaries,  is  at  the  mercy 
of  a  power  as  preponderating,  as  Cannel  and  Tabor  are 
conspicuous  among  the  hills.  And  so  Egypt  herself  is 
told  to  prepare  for  captivity.  Her  towns,  though  innumer- 
able as  the  trees  of  a  forest,  shall  be  laid  low,  because  the> 


JEREMIAH  xLviii.     DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  4il 

host  of  invaders  will  be  alike  numerous.  They  who  trust 
in  Pharaoh  and  are  threatened  in  verse  25,  include  among; 
them  more  especially  those  disobedient  Israelites  who  per- 
sisted in  settling  themselves  there.  The  repeopling  of 
Egypt  is  also  foretold  in  Ezek.  xxix.  13 See  a  counter- 
part to  verses  27  and  28  in  ch.  xxx.  10,  11.  God  did  not 
make  a  full  end  of  Israel  then,  nor  will  he  yet  make  a  full 
end  of  them.  He  corrects  in  measure,  for  their  discipline 
and  not  for  their  destruction.  Rest  and  prosperity  yet 
await  them. 

Jeremiah  xlvii. — From  Ezek.  xxix.  17-21,  we  gather 
that  the  invasion  of  Egypt  took  place  after  the  destruc- 
tion of  Tyre  by  Nebuchadnezzar.  The  sea-coast  seems  to 
have  been  the  way  by  which  his  armies  went  from  the  one 
place  to  the  other ;  and  there  in  all  probability  it  was  that 
they  achieved  the  destruction  of  the  Philistines.  Opinions 
vary,  however,  in  regard  to  this.  Certain  it  is  that  the 
hostile  force  which  smote  the  Philistines  and  ovei-whelmed 
Eg}^t  came  from  the  same  quarter,  the  North  ;  and  from 
verse  4  it  is  very  likely  that  Nebuchadnezzar  addressed 
himself  to  the  pillage  and  overthrow  of  the  Philistines ; 
they  had  been  the  allies  of  Tyre,  and  so  took  the  part 
against  him  of  his  enemies.  The  invaders  were  met  by 
the  Philistines  with  the  feebleness  of  despair,  verse  S,  and 
so  they  are  represented  as  cutting  themselves  and  inflict- 
ing baldness  upon  their  heads,  which  were  then  acts  of 

mourning The  closing  apostrophe  to  the  sword  is  highly 

poetical — as  doing  the  Lord's  work  at  the  Lord's  bidding. 

Jeremiah  xlviii.  1-13. — Now  follows  a  lengthened  pro- 
phecy of  Moab,  whose  towns  are  spoken  of  here  in  such 


41Q  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS,    jeremiah  xlviii. 

numbers  as  to  make  the  geographical  study  of  this  chap- 
ter very  interesting.  Misgab,  however,  is  understood  not 
to  be  the  name  of  a  city,  but  an  appellative,  signifying  a 
high  fortress,  and  descriptive  of  Kiriathaim.  There  is 
something  very  impressive  in  the  personification  of  a 
country,  as  if  it  were  a  li\ang,  and  in  this  instance  a  suf- 
fering individual.  It  must  have  been  a  kingdom  of  great 
wealth,  (verse  7.)  •  •  •  The  work  of  slaughter  and  destruc- 
tion is  set  forth  in  a  variety  of  illustrative  expressions. 
The  invaders  are  spoken  of,  inverse  10,  as  commissioned 
^0  do  the  work  of  the  Lord  in  the  execution  of  their 
oloody  charge,  and  warned  against  doing  it  deceitfully. 
They  must  go  through  with  it,  and  not  relentingly  keep 

back  their  sword  from  blood Wine  settled  on  its  lees 

preserves  its  streng*th  and  flavour;  and  by  this  image, 
•loab  is  represented  as  having  been  all  along  at  ease,  and 
so  its  pride  and  prosperity  are  accounted  for.  Verse  11, 
because  of  this  expression,  is  a  notabile.  To  be  settled 
on  this  world's  lees  is  to  make  the  world  our  sufficiency 
and  rest ;  and  it  might  be  well  to  be  shaken  out  of  such  a 
carnal  habitude,  though  by  the  discipline  of  violent  and 
adverse  vicissitudes. 

14-27. — In  verse  15,  which  reads  confusedly  as  it  stands, 
so  as  not  to  distinguish  the  genders  aright,  the  render- 
ing should  be — "  A  spoiler  of  Moab  and  of  her  cities  is 
gone  up,  and  his  chosen  young  men  are  gone  down  to 
slay.""  Yet,  from  verse  16,  it  appears  that  either  gender 
is  applied  to  Moab.  Several  of  the  towns  here  named  are 
extant  to  this  day,  and  with  nearly  the  same  names.  "We 
inust  not  be  surprised  at  the  number  of  them  in  so  small 
a  countiy  ;  for  on  the  east  of  Jordan  there  are  ruins  which 
fully  accredit  the  informations  of  Scripture  regarding  this. 


JKREMIAH  XLviii.    DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  413 

We  must  here  advert  to  Robinson's  "  Biblical  Researcbes" 
as  being  j^eculiarly  rich  and  interesting  in  its  authentica- 
tions of  the  geography  of  this  region.  Bozrah  is  a  town 
of  special  eminence ;  and  the  enumeration  of  names  serves 
to  enhance  tlie  impression  of  a  wide-spread  desolation .... 
To  be  made  drunken,  as  applied  here  to  Moab,  is  to  be 
made  drunken  with  the  cup  of  vengeance;  and  she  be- 
comes the  object  of  derision  when  sickened  and  laid  pro- 
strate under  the  weight  of  her  calamities  ; — a  just  retri- 
bution, it  is  here  said,  for  her  exultation  in  the  distresses 
of  Israel  that  had  made  no  encroachment  upon  her  terri- 
toiy,  and  did  not  join  the  dej)redators  against  her.  Must 
not  this  invasion,  then,  have  taken  place  after  the  destruc- 
tion of  Jerusalem  ? 

28-37. — The  "dove  making  her  nests  by  the  sides  of 
the  pit's  mouth,"  seeks  for  solitude  and  secrecy,  or  per- 
haps in  places  where  it  were  dangerous  to  approach  her. 
. . .  Moab  must  have  been  elated  by  the  greatness  and  the 
long  course  of  his  prosperity ;  but  he  is  not  so  effective 
as  he  is  aspiring.  He  has  not  the  streng-th  to  realize 
what  his  pride  and  anger  would  fain  prompt  him  to. 
Jeremiah's  forte  is  the  pathetic,  in  which  he  indulges — 
even  when  contemplating  the  miseries  and  misfortunes 
of  the  enemies  of  Israel There  is  a  remarkable  coinci- 
dence between  this  passage  and  that  in  Isaiah  xvi.  For 
Kir-heres,  see  2  Kings  iii.  25  ;  and  for  Jazer,  Num.  xxxii. 
8.  The  famous  vines  of  Jazer  had  spread  themselves  on- 
ward to  the  Dead  Sea ;  but  this  famous  countrv^  of  vine- 
yards and  vintages  was  laid  desolate.  The  image  of  a 
heifer  three  years  old  likens  the  grief  of  Moab  for  her 
children  to  the  plaintive  lowing  of  a  cow  deprived  of  ita 
calf     Their  idolatry  also  is  adverted  to  as  an  object  of 


414  DAILY  SCRTPTURK  READINGS.       jeremiah  xlix. 

vengeance,  and  yet  the  vengeance  when  inflicted  calls 
forth  the  compassion  of  the  prophet. 

38-47. — "  A  vessel  wherein  is  no  pleasure/'  is  a  signifi- 
cant expression.  We  read  of  vessels  of  wrath  and  vessels  of 
mercy ;  but  here  we  are  rather  led  to  regard  them  in  their 
own  characteristics,  as  vessels  of  deformity,  or  elegance  and 
beauty.  God  loves  what  in  itself  is  lovely — as,  for  ex- 
ample, the  ornament  of  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit,  which  in 
His  sight  is  of  great  price.  He  rejoiced  over  the  fair 
creations  of  matter ;  and  how  much  more  has  He  pleasure 
in  those  who  are  graced  by  the  moralities  of  His  Spirit's 
own  workmanship  ! ...  At  verse  40  look  to  Deut.  xxviii. 
49,  and  Jer.  xlix.  22.     The  "  eagle  ''  here  is  the  invader  of 

Moab At  verses  43  and  44  look  to  Isaiah  xxiv.  17,  18. 

Heshbon,  that  wont  to  be  a  protection  to  them,  when 
taken  and  garrisoned  by  their  enemies,  will  be  the  ema- 
nating centre  of  all  that  is  hostile  and  destructive At 

verses  45  and  46,  see  Kum.  xxi.  28,  29,  and  xxiv.  17.  It 
is  interesting  to  mark  the  parallel  passages  between  older 
and  later  prophecies.  On  being  referred  back  to  Balaam, 
it  seems  to  us  that  there  are  few  utterances  of  greater 
sublimity  and  power  than  those  which  proceeded  from  the 
mouth  of  this  prophet,  corrupt  and  treacherous  though  he 

was Wliat  precious  confirmations  of  Scripture  may  we 

look  for  when  God  finally  brings  back  the  captivity  of 
Jacob,  and  the  prophecies  regarding  the  neighbouring 
countries  shall  have  their  palpable  fulfilment ! 

Jeremiah  xlix.  1-6. — Now  follows  the  judgment  of  the 
Ammonites,  who  bordered  on  the  Israelites  east  of  Jordan, 
but  whose  king  with  his  people  now  had  possession  of  the 
territory  of  Gad.     Rabbah  is  decidedly  Ammonite,  and 


JEREMIAH  xLix.       DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  415 

Ileslibon  on  the  east  side  of  Jordan;  but  I  can  find  no 
Ai  on  that  side.  At  all  events  the  Ammonites  now  in- 
herited part  of  Israel ;  but  Israel  was  at  length  to  disin- 
herit them  again — to  be  the  heirs  of  their  heirs.  How  fell 
the  atrocities  of  war  !  daughters  to  be  bm-ned  with  fire 
Their  rulers,  both  civil  and  ecclesiastical,  were  to  go  iut  ^ 
captivity — the  priests  of  their  idolatrous  worship,  as  well 
as  the  princes  who  bore  sway  over  them.  The  daughters, 
however,  might  be  the  lesser  towns  of  the  country — the 
daughters  of  Rabbah  the  metropolis  —  The  "  flowing 
valley''  is  the  fruitful  valley — a  characteristic,  we  have 
no  doubt,  of  that  land.  They  had  much  agriculturaJ 
wealth,  which  is  the  parent  of  all  wealth  ;  and  we  wonder 
not,  therefore,  at  the  treasures  in  which  the  Ammonites 
trusted.  But  they  trusted  in  what  would  not  save  them. 
There  was  to  be  a  sad  desolation  and  dispersion — and 
this,  it  would  seem,  at  the  hand  of  invaders  all  round. 
They  who  had  taken  to  flight  should  not  be  rallied  and 
brought  together  again.  Yet,  as  of  Moab,  so  of  Amnion 
— they  would,  or  will  at  length,  be  brought  again  from 
the  captivity  by  the  Lord  God  of  Hosts. 

7-22.- — Teman  is  either  a  town  or  district  of  Edom,  or  per- 
haps another  name  for  the  whole  country.  Duke  Teman 
was  the  son  of  Eliphaz  the  son  of  Esau.  (Genesis  xxxvi. 
15.)  Eliphaz  in  Job  was  a  Temanite.  In  the  account  of 
Esau's  descendants  we  read  of  the  land  of  Temani.  (Gen. 
xxxvi.  34.)  Teman  and  Edom  were  proverbial  for  wisdom. 
(Obad.  8.)  . . .  To  "  dwell  deep''  is  to  remove  and  hide  one- 
self Yet  Esau  will  hide  himself  in  vain :  he  shall  be  m-ade 
utterly  desolate  ;  and  none  left  to  take  charge  of  the 
widows  or  children.  Or  perhaps  verse  11  is  an  interroga- 
tion ;  or  it  may  be  as  it  stands — none  shall  be  left  but 


416  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.      jeremiah  xlix. 

widows  and  children,  whose  sole  dependence  will  he  on  God, 
for  none  other  will  be  left  to  help  them.  It  is  remarkable 
that  no  such  restoration  is  promised  to  Edom  here  as  to 
other  countries.  Verse  11,  though  it  may  be  but  an  ac- 
commodation, is  a  precious  notabile.  They  who  were  less 
deserving  of  punishment  (the  Jews)  have  been  made  to 
suffer,  and  shalt  thou  escape?  Bozrah  still  subsists.  (Robin- 
son, ii.  570,  571.)  . . .  Wliat  a  striking  confirmation  of  verse 
16  in  the  present  ruins  of  Petra  ! . . .  Verse  19  is  obscure, 
from  the  confusion  of  genders,  and  from  the  first  of  its  in- 
terrogations being  properly  an  affirmative  clause.  Him 
that  I  have  chosen  I  will  commission  against  her ;  and  no 
shepherd  can  stand  before  me  any  more  than  the  flock  of 
a  sheepfold  against  a  lion  from  Jordan.  And  verse  20  is 
cleared  up  by  reading,  that  they  shall  be  dragged  out  from 
the  least  of  the  flock — the  Edomites  shall  be  dragged  out 

for  slaughter  from  their  wives  and  children In  verse  22 

the  invader,  compared  formerly  to  a  lion,  is  now  compared 
to  an  eagle Verse  21 — poetical. — The  Red  Sea  conter- 
minous to  Edom. 

23-39. — For  Hamath,  see  Robinson's  Appendix,  p.  176. 
They  are  plunged  in  a  sea  of  sorrow,  or  become  like  the 
troubled  sea  which  cannot  rest Verses  25  and  27,  poe- 
tical. The  Damascus  of  the  present  day  is  exceedingly 
1  jeautiful  and  picturesque.  Kedar  and  Hazor  though  men- 
tioned together  are  described  separately.  Nebuchadnez- 
zar is  the  common  invader  of  all  these  countries. — "  Fear 
on  every  side''  is  a  proverbial  expression. — There  was  a 
Hazor,  a  town  in  Judah,  distinct  from  the  country  here 
spoken  of.  It  was  a  remote  nation  dwelling  alone  and  at 
ease.  Elam  is  generally  regarded  as  synon^mious  with 
Persia ;  but  there  is  ground  for  believing  that  Elam  was 


JEREMIAH  L.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  417 

a  separate  kingdom  at  first,  though  afterguards  incoi-porated 
with  Persia.  Its  captivity  too  is  to  be  brought  back  in 
later,  I  think  in  future  days. 

Jeremiah  l.  1-10. — Now  comes  the  judgment  of  the 
mighty  Babylon — the  great  spoiler  herself  in  turn  made 
a  prey.  Bel  and  Merodach  are  her  idols.  Media  lies 
north  of  Babylon.  This  nearly  affected  the  children  of 
Israel,  who  are  here  brought  upon  the  stage  in  a  most  in- 
teresting guise — seeking  for  their  return,  and  expressing 
their  purpose  and  wish  in  verse  5,  one  of  the  most  precious 
notabilia  in  Scripture. — My  God,  in  that  perpetual  cove- 
nant would  I  so  join  myself  God  turns  Him  in  compas- 
sion upon  His  own  people.  He  lays  the  blame  of  their 
defection  on  their  shepherds.  He  takes  part  against  their 
adversaries,  who  it  seems  perceived  the  cause  of  their 
miseries,  and  cast  it  reproachfully  upon  them.  Even 
their  misfortunes  might  thus  have  redounded  to  the  keep- 
ing up  a  notion  among  men  of  the  true  God.  He  bids 
them  come  out  of  Babylon  ;  and  many  of  them  may  have 
left  the  city  and  escaped  from  the  slaughter  of  its  destruc- 
tion, even  as  the  first  Christians  removed  from  the  doomed 
city  of  Jerusalem. 

11-20. — God  is  offended  and  takes  vengeance  on  those 
who  triumphed  in  the  calamities  of  His  own  people,  even 
though  these  were  inflicted  by  His  own  hand,  and  for  the 

purposes  of  discipline In  verse  12,  behold  her,  your 

mother  Babylon — to  become  the  last  of  the  nations  and 
a  wilderness !  Mark  the  resemblance  in  point  of  general 
effect  between  the  denunciation  here,  and  those  of  Rev. 
xviii.  15.  "  She  hath  given  her  hand'' — she  hath  made 
surrender  of  herself — given  her  hand  to  be  bound   by 


418  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  jeremiah  l. 

manacles.  The  destruction  of  Jenisalem  is  repaid  and 
retaliated  on  Babylon.  The  desolation  shall  extend  to 
country  as  well  as  town.  Agriculture  will  languish  for 
want  of  labourers,  and  all  foreign  auxiliaries  will  make 
escape  to  their  owti  land.  Both  the  Assyrian  and  Ba- 
bylonish captivities  are  here  brought  to  mind  ;  and  the 
remaining  heaps  of  Nineveh  and  Babylon  are  striking  mo- 
numental evidence  of  the  vengeance  that  followed  upon 
both.  In  contrast  with  this,  what  images  of  peace  and 
beauty  are  associated  with  the  restoration  and  re-establish- 
ment of  Israel !  With  what  a  cadence  of  sweetest  music  do 
the  names  of  Carmel  and  Bashan  fall  upon  our  ears  ! — My 
God,  let  my  sins  be  in  like  manner  obliterated,  and  no 
more  made  mention  of  there.  Let  them  be  washed' out  in 
the  blood  of  the  Lamb,  so  that  though  sought  after  they 
may  not  be  found,  and  leave  as  little  trace  of  their  exist- 
ence as  if  they  never  were.  Thou  hast  long  reserved  me, 
0  God,  so  that  I  am  still  in  the  land  of  the  living.  Let 
me  be  encouraged  and  take  confident  hold  of  Thine  offered 
forgiveness. 

21-32. — According  to  Blayney,  Merathaim  and  Pekod 
are  not  pro^^er  names,  but  appellatives,  and  he  renders  it 
into  the  land  of  bitterness,  and  "  after  them''  into  their 
posterity.  Babylon  as  the  instrument  of  destruction  to 
many  nations,  is  called  "  the  hammer  of  the  whole  earth.'"'' 
It  was  taken  by  surprise,  and  when  not  aware.  How 
literally  she  has  been  cast  up  as  heaps  may  be  seen  in 
the  mounds  of  the  present  day :  from  the  excavation  of 
which,  as  well  as  of  Nineveh,  we  look  for  most  interesting 
relics.  Blayney  turns  the  "bullocks''  of  verse  27  into 
fattening  stalls — understanding  by  these,  cities  whose  in- 
habitants lived  at  ease  and  in  sleek  prosperity.     They  who 


JKREjnAH  LT.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  419 


were  of  tlie  captivity  fled,  and  on  their  return  to  Zion 
would  declare  and  celebrate  there  God's  vengeance  for 
His  ruined  temple.  Over  against  verse  29,  see  Rev.  xviii.  6. 
Babylon  was  not  only  proud,  but  proud  against  the  Lord, 
— carried  it  with  defiance  against  the  God  of  Israel.  God 
resisteth  the  proud,  and  giveth  grace  unto  the  humble. 
He  regarded  the  prayer  of  the  destitute,  and  did  not  de- 
spise their  prayer.     (Psalm  cii.  16,  17.) 

33-46. — It  would  seem  as  if  the  Assyrian  and  Baby- 
lonish captives,  as  fellow-sufferers,  petitioned  to  be  let  go  ; 
but  their  oppressors  held  them  fast.     The  Lord  Himself 

interposed  for  them The  "  liars''  are  probably  the  false 

prophets  and  priests  of  the  Babylonish  idolatry.  The 
auxiliaries  and  foreigners  in  Babylon  were  sufficiently 
numerous  to  constitute  a  mingled  people.  The  "  drought 
upon  her  waters''  was  remarkably  fulfilled  by  the  stratagem 
of  C\TUS,  who  in  turning  the  Euphrates  from  its  channel, 
dried  it  up.  This  destruction  is  followed  up  by  a  pei-pe- 
tual  desolation,  all  the  more  picturesque  from  the  doleful 
creatures  which  dwelt  there.  The  ruin  should  be  as  com- 
plete as  was  that  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah — though  this 
latter  came  direct  from  God  in  heaven ;  whereas  the 
other  was  brought  upon  them  by  the  arms  of  an  invader. 

Mark  the  identity  of  verses  44-46,  with  ch.  xlix.  19-21 

The  noise  that  was  heard  at  the  destruction  of  Edom  was 
heard  at  that  of  Babylon  among  the  nations.  The  wasters 
were  wasted  themselves. 

Jeremiah  li.  1-10. — This  denunciation  of  Babylon  is 
prolonged  through  nearly  the  whole  of  this  long  chapter. 
Its  fall  bulks  very  great  in  history,  and  so  it  occupies 
a  like  large  place  in  prophecy.     Besides,  it  is  the  type  of 


420  DAILY  SCRIPTUEE  READINGS.  jekemiah  li. 

another  great  fall  tliat  is  to  take  place,  and  to  usher  in  an- 
other great  deliverance  of  the  Church  of  God The  "bri- 

gandine''  is  a  coat  of  mail.  There  was  relentless  slaughter 
in  the  streets  of  Babylon.  And  it  was  the  cause  of  Israel 
and  Judali  w^hich  was  now  in  dependence.  It  was  for 
them  that  this  vengeance  descended  upon  their  enemies 
— even  though  they  had  provoked  the  Lord  by  the  abund- 
ance of  their  transgressions.  How  strikingly  does  verse 
6  quadrate  w4th  Rev.  xviii.  4 — the  future  antitype  to  the 

great  destruction  that  we  read  of  in  this  place For  verse 

7,  see  ch.  xxv.  15.  Babylon  w^as  the  wine-cup  of  God's  fury, 
which  maddened  and  intoxicated  all  the  nations — causing 
them  to  stagger  and  reel  to  and  fro  like  drunken  men. 
The  suddenness  of  Babylon's  fall,  in  verse  8,  harmonizes 
with  Rev.  xviii.  1 7,  wdiere  we  read  that  in  one  hour  the 
riches  of  the  mystical  Babylon  will  come  to  nought.  In 
this  verse  the  auxiliaries  of  Babylon  are  asked  to  heal  her 
if  they  can.  Their  reply  is  that  they  would  if  they  could, 
but  that  it  was  in  vain  to  strive  against  the  decree  of 
heaven ;  and  therefore,  they  had  nothing  for  it,  but  each 
to  withdraw  into  their  own  land.  Among  others  the  Jews 
in  verse  10  make  special  acknowledgment  that  God  had 
vindicated  their  cause  against  their  oppressors,  and  that 
in  Zion  they  would  testify  His  great  deliverance. 

11-19. — The  mention  of  the  Modes  impresses  the  coin- 
cidence between  sacred  and  profane  authorship — bringing 
the  prophecies  of  the  one  into  the  day-light  of  history  as 
recorded  by  the  other.  There  was  much  of  devising  on  the 
part  of  Cyrus  against  Babylon,  and  much  done  by  him — • 
yet  all  devised  and  done  by  Him  whose  servant  and 
■whose  instrument  he  was.  How  descriptively  is  the 
situation  of  the  city  given  here  as  dwelling  upon  many 


JEREMIAH  LI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  421 

waters !  The  comparison  of  tlie  men  to  caterpillars  is 
highly  poetical.  What  a  fine  sentence  of  natural  theology 
is  interposed  in  verse  15,  and  in  verse  16  we  have  set 
forth  His  control  over  the  secondary  causes — working 
as  He  does,  not  without  means  but  by  means.  What  a 
rebuke  does  this  lay  upon  idolatry  !  and  so  the  vindica- 
tion of  Israel's  God  above  the  gods  of  the  heathen.  Grod 
is  the  portion  of  His  people,  and  they  are  the  rod  of  His 
inheritance,  marked  out  for  His  own  as  if  by  a  measuring 
rod.  Mark  the  identity  of  verses  15-19,  with  ch.  x.  12-16. 
20-30. — The  address  which  follows  and  is  kept  through 
some  verses,  is,  we  should  think,  to  Cyrus,  as  the  head  of 
the  invaders  and  destroyers  of  Babylon — he  properly  being 
the  battle-axe  and  weapons  of  war.  The  destruction  ex- 
tending to  the  husbandman  and  his  oxen  marks  a  desola- 
tion of  the  country  as  well  as  of  the  metropolis "In 

your  sight" — in  sight  of  the  Medes  and  Persians  who 
were  the  perpetrators  of  this  evil,  or  in  sight  of  the  Jews  ? 
Babylon  is  the  destroying  mountain,  whence  the  torrents 
of  a  volcanic  destruction  flowed  down  upon  the  nations ; 
but  the  burner  should  itself  be  burnt,  and  not  a  stone  be 
taken  of  it  for  any  edifice.  The  whole  of  its  political 
structure  shall  be  composed  of  foreign  materials.  It  shall 
be  under  the  yoke  of  foreigners.  The  countries  of  verse 
27  are  variously  conjectured  on.  There  is  poetry  in  the 
"  rough  caterpillars.''     The  kings  of  the  Medes  in  the  Sep- 

tuagint  is  read  singularly  king  of  Media "  They  have 

burned  their  dweUing-places"  might  be  rendered  "their 
dwelling-places  are  burned." 

May,  1847. 

81-44. — The  details  given  here  are  strikingly  in  accord- 
ance with  the  historical  particulars,  as  handed  down  to 


422  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  jeremiah  li. 

US  both,  by  Herodotus  and  Xenopbon.  The  "  harvest "  of 
verse  33  is  more  properly  the  cutting  of  the  straw,  which 
took  place  after  the  threshing,  as  the  harvest  did  before  it. 
(See  Bla}Tiey.)  Then  Zion  takes  up  her  song  of  triumph 
over  Babylon,  on  whom  vengeance  is  now  being  taken  for 
all  her  oppressions  and  cruelties  to  the  children  of  Israel. 
The  blood  of  Jerusalem  was  upon  the  inhabitants  of  Chal- 
dea,  now  reckoned  with  for  all  her  violence  done  to  that 
city.  The  sea  of  Babylon  is  the  waters  of  Euphrates^ 
the  bed  of  which  was  literally  made  dry  by  the  decree  af 
Cyrus,  and  reduced  to  the  heaps  which  subsist  to  this 
day,  and  from  the  excavation  of  which  I  would  san- 
guinely  look  forward  to  such  relics  and  memorials  as 
might  greatly  augment  our  monumental  evidence  for  the 
truth  of  revelation.  There  was  all  the  festivity  on  the 
occasion  of  its  capture  which  is  here  foretold,  and  the 

uproar    of   conflict    and    terrible    slaughter The    sea 

coming  up  upon  Babylon  (verse  42)  might  be  understood 
of  the  mighty  host  of  invaders.  Babylon  is  meant  by 
Sheshach  in  verse  41,  which  gives  forth  a  brief  but  im- 
pressive lamentation.  Soon  did  it  become  a  land  void  of 
inhabitants.  The  god  of  Babylon  may  be  said  to  have 
been  punished  in  its  overthrow  and  ruin,  and  it  regorged 
the  treasures,  and  more  particularly  the  sacred  vessels  of 
which  the  temple  in  Jerusalem  had  been  rifled.  (See  Isaiah 
xiv.  23 ;  and  "Prideaux's  Connection,''  Book  ii..  Part  i.) 

45-58. — Over  against  verse  45  see  Rev.  xviii.  4.  The 
one  injunction  is  more  to  avoid  participation  in  its  dan- 
gers— the  other  in  its  sins.  In  verse  46  it  seems  to  me 
that  the  prophet  is  enforcing  the  injunction  to  go  out  of 
Babylon,  and  not  to  give  way  to  the  fear  of  rumoured 
violence  in  the  country  around  it — for  that  God  would 


JEKKMIAH  LI.  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  423 

certainly  wreak  His  vengeance  on  tlie  city,  and  they,  the 
Jews,  would  be  much  safer  out  of  it.  The  direction  of 
verse  50,  we  have  no  doubt,  is  addressed  to  the  Jews,  who 
are  here  told  that  all  this  vengeance  is  inflicted  for  the 
sake  of  Jerusalem  afar  off — but  whose  God  should  now  be 
called  to  remembrance.  The  Jews  in  verse  51  make  re- 
ply, and  profess  how  much  they  were  scandalized  by  the 
outrage  done  to  their  sanctuaries.  But  for  this  God  will 
bring  the  invaders  to  judgment.  All  the  pride  and  strength 
of  Babylon  will  not  avail  her.  The  uproar  of  her  last 
tumults  will  be  put  an  end  to,  and  a  great  silence  will 
ensue.  Her  princes  should  drink  the  wine  of  God's  fury, 
and  sleep  the  sleep  of  death;  and  the  destroyers  shall 
work  to  very  weariness  and  exhaustion  in  the  work  of  her 
entire  demolition. 

59-64. — Not  when  Seraiah  went  with,  but  Blayney  ren- 
ders it  on  6e/ia^of  Zedekiah,  as  the  bearer  of  tribute.  These 
written  predictions  of  Jeremiah  may  have  been  given  to 
Seraiah  in  a  packet,  and  not  read  by  him  till  he  had  gone 
to  Babylon,  and  so  read  for  his  own  private  information, 
and  not  in  the  hearing  of  others.  This  Seraiah,  this  quiet 
prince,*  seems  to  have  been  a  man  of  piety  and  of  accord- 
ant feelings  and  views  with  Jeremiah  himself,  from  the 
commission  given  to  him  by  the  prophet ;  and  more  espe- 
cially from  the  words  of  address  to  God  which  he  put  into 
his  mouth.  The  clause — '^  and  they  shall  be  weary''  does 
not  occur  in  the  Septuagint.  If  retained,  it  might  be 
made  to  signify  the  exhaustion,  and  so  the  extinction  of 
Babylon.  It  is  obvious  that  a  chronological  arrangement 
would  have  assigned  a  different  place  to  this  chapter.  The 
order  in  many  parts  of  the  Book  seems  to  have  been  quite 
.    *  But,  for  "  a  quiet  prince,"  it  is  also  translated  "  carried  a  present."     - 


424  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.         jeremiah  lii. 

arbitrary.  At  all  events  we  have  no  more  of  Jeremiah  in 
this  Book,  who,  though  of  lower  rank  and  estimation,  is 
nevertheless  a  most  illustrious  Scriptural  writer. 

Jeremiah  iii.  1-11. — This  chapter  is  regarded  as  the 
addition  of  some  later  hand — of  Ezra  perhaps — or  whoever 
in  after-times  revised  and  collected  the  sacred  writings. 
It  is  nearly  identical  with  the  passage  from  2  Kings  xxiv. 
18,  to  the  end  of  ch.  xxv.  There  are  certain  variations 
however.  In  verse  2  "  Jehoiakim''  for  "  Jehoiachin""  in  2 
Kings  xxiv.  9,  may  have  readily  occurred  as  a  mere  error 
of  transcription  in  one  or  other  of  the  places.  It  is  likelier 
however  to  be  correct  here,  as  the  reign  of  Jehoiachin  was 
only  of  three  months'  duration,  and  that  when  he  was  a 
very  young  man — whereas  that  of  Jehoiakim  reached  to 
eleven  years,  and  formed  a  busy  and  important  history. 
The  succession  of  Zedekiah  is  spoken  of  as  a  judicial  in- 
fliction on  Judah.  (See  Hos.  xiii.  11.)  By  comparing  verse 
4  with  2  Kings  xxv.  1,  it  becomes  obvious  that  Nebuchad- 
rezzar, which  occurs  so  frequently  in  Jeremiah,  is  identi- 
cal with  Nebuchadnezzar — a  variation  proceeding  from 
the  resemblance  of  the  two  Hebrew  letters.  In  2  Kings 
xxv.  4,  it  is  the  king  who  is  made  to  go  the  way  of  the 
plain ;  in  verse  7  here  it  is  the  king  and  his  followers. 
The  "city  being  broken  up,'"  is  a  strong  and  significant  ex- 
pression for  what  took  place  after  that  it  was  broken  into. 
We  repeat  that  it  was  a  barbarous  proceeding  to  kill  the 
sons  of  Zedekiah  before  his  eyes,  previous  to  the  putting 
of  them  out.  It  is  here,  and  not  in  Second  Kings,  that  we 
read  of  the  further  slaughter  of  all  the  princes  of  Judah 
in  Riblah.  It  is  only  here,  too,  that  we  learn  of  Zedekiah 
having  been  made  a  prisoner  in  Babylon  for  life. 


JEREMIAH  Lu.         DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.  425 

12-23. — The  latter  part  of  the  above  narrative  we  also 
have  substantially  in  ch.  xxxix.  What  follows  continues  to 
harmonize  with  2  Kings  xxv.  In  verse  12  what  is  called 
the  '*  tenth'' is  made  the  "seventh'' in  Second  Kings — 
one  of  those  frequent  numerical  variations  which  occur  in 
transcription.  The  clause  in  verse  15,  relative  to  the  poor 
of  the  people,  does  not  occur  in  ch.  xxxix.  9 ;  nor  in  2  Kings 
xxv.  The  "  residue  of  the  people"  marks  the  greatness  of 
the  slaughter,  as  if  the  bulk  and  body  of  them  had  been 
destroyed.  The  very  poorest  are  often  the  safest  on  these 
sad  occasions.  They  are  not  formidable,  while  at  the  same 
time  they  may  be  serviceable.  There  is  a  fuller  and  more 
particular  enumeration  here  than  in  Second  Kings,  of  the 
temple  furniture  that  was  taken  away — not  perhaps  of  great 
pecuniary  value,  but — as  consecrated  vessels,  and  used  in 
their  ritual — of  mighty  estimation  in  the  eyes  of  the  Jews. 
It  is  in  the  same  spirit  that  these  vessels  are  spoken  of  and 
enumerated  by  Ezra,  when  they  were  given  up  by  Cyrus, 
and  brought  back  to  Jerusalem 

24-34. — The  keepers  of  the  door  must  have  been  such 
persons  of  distinction  as  we  read  of  in  2  Kings  xii.  9 ;  xxiii. 
4 ;  the  persons  appointed,  it  is  likely,  to  collect  the  offer- 
ings of  the  people,  and  not  the  ordinary  door-keepers. 
What  a  barbarous  thing  war  is,  that  these  and  so  many 
others  should  be  taken  for  the  deliberate  purpose  of  being 
put  to  death,  and  travelled  to  a  great  distance  from  one 
place  to  another  upon  this  errand.  The  number  taken  to 
Babylon  seems  very  small,  inferring  a  proportionally  large 
destruction  of  human  life  in  the  subjugation  of  the  country. 
The  Book  closes  with  that  pleasing  statement  which  we 
have  at  the  end  of  the  Second  Book  of  Kings — regarding 
the  compassionate  treatment  of  the  captive  and  imprisoned 


42G  DAILY  SCRIPTURE  READINGS.          jeremiah  lii. 

king  Jelioiachin,  from  a  movement  of  piteous  considera- 
tion— the  very  movement  of  wliich  serves  to  alleviate 
these  horrors  and  ferocities.  We  are  not  yet  done  with 
Jeremiah,  of  whom  we  have  long  thought  that  he  does 
not  rank  in  general  estimation  sufficiently  high  among 
the  most  illustrious  writers  of  the  Old  Testament. 


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